Covered employment classified in Government continued to increase at a slower rate than total employment in 1997. Total Government employment increased by 1.6 percent or 4,725 jobs. The net increase was primarily caused by an increasing population's demand for schools, police and improved infrastructure. It should be noted when reviewing Government employment by industry that most employers do not provide breakouts by department, and instead combine all employment for an entity such as a county, city or department in one SIC code.