President Joe Biden, a Democrat, is rapidly approaching a milestone in his efforts to expand the bureaucratic state of America.

According to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the total number of government employees in the United States is now nearing a new record.

In the month of November alone, the U.S. saw an addition of 49,000 government jobs. Out of these, 32,000 were at the local level and 17,000 were at the federal level.

As a result of this increase, the total number of government employees now stands at 22,967,000, as reported by the BLS.

This figure in November is second only to one other month in terms of total government employees. In May 2010, during the tenure of former President Barack Obama, the government employed 22,996,000 individuals. However, it is important to note that this record was primarily due to temporary hiring for the census that year, as stated by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis (FRED).

The growth in government employment follows a consistent upward trend, with the government adding 65,000 and 63,000 employees in October and September respectively, according to the BLS.

If this trend continues into December, the number of government employees is expected to surpass 23 million, reaching a new all-time high.

According to the Census Bureau, the hiring by the government usually experiences a significant surge during the months surrounding the census collection. This phenomenon takes place in the United States during years that end with a zero. The Census Bureau itself hires a large number of temporary workers, reaching its peak in May, in order to meet the obligations of data collection.

The COVID-19 pandemic prevented the anticipated increase in government hiring for the 2020 census from happening. In February of that year, hiring efforts came to a halt at 22,871,000 government positions, as reported by FRED.

Following the onset of the pandemic, the total government employment declined and reached a low point of 21,396,000 positions by May 2020. However, it has been steadily increasing since then and currently stands at a higher level.

In November, the United States saw the addition of 199,000 jobs, with approximately 47,000 employees returning to work after strikes concluded for the United Auto Workers and the actors’ union SAG-AFTRA.

The government’s job additions for the month were second only to the healthcare sector, which added 77,000 jobs in November.