For the second year in a row, VA ranks sixth among the 17 largest federal agencies considered the Best Places to Work in the Federal Government. The annual Partnership for Public Service report measures employee satisfaction and helps agencies work to improve it.

Our employee engagement score ticked up slightly in 2019 to 65.3. NASA snagged the top spot in 2019 at 81.2 in employee engagement. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Intelligence Community came in second and third.

“Our engagement score reflects ongoing efforts to listen to and support our career professionals,” said Darren Sherrard, Associate Director of Recruitment Marketing at VA. “Even as we strive to climb even higher, it’s wonderful to know that employees feel satisfied serving our nation’s Veterans every single day.”

Enjoy work-life balance

The rewards of a VA career go beyond engagement in our work and mission. We also offer competitive pay and unbeatable benefits. These include 36 to 49 days of paid time off per year and access to a range of premium-paid health insurance plans. Parents considering a career at VA may even get access to on-site child care centers at select facilities. Child care subsidies are available for certain employees, too.

There’s another reason to take a closer look at VA or other federal careers. In mid-December, President Donald Trump signed the fiscal 2020 National Defense Authorization Act, which included a paid parental leave provision. The law grants up to 12 weeks of paid time off for the birth, adoption or foster care placement of a new child for employees covered by the Family and Medical Leave Act. Regulations implementing the law, which applies to leave taken after Oct. 1, 2020, are being issued by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management.

Choose a VA career today

See why VA employees rank VA among the best places to work and explore a VA career.

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2 Comments

  1. Bill Fotsch January 18, 2020 at 09:13

    I wonder how the VA would compare to industry leaders like Southwest Airlines, Starbucks, Capital One and many private companies economically engage their employees, who treat them as trusted partners, driving and participating in the profitable growth of the company. I am guessing the VA would not do well.
    Industry leaders engagement and profit results speak for themselves. The focus on employee challenges, not perks. There is a level of stress, but it is constructive stress. These Forbes and HBR articles provide more background: https://hbr.org/2018/01/more-than-a-paycheck http://www.forbes.com/sites/fotschcase/2016/05/31/engage-your-employees-in-making-money/

    • Jennifer Adam January 27, 2020 at 08:55

      Bill- The VA is a federal healthcare agency and does not have ‘profit growth’. The other companies you mentioned are for-profit. Your comparison makes no sense. VA provides amazing benefits and retirement for their employees, I am not aware of any of those companies who provide a full retirement after 20 years with no financial effort from the employee- VA does.

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