I guess I'm just wondering...are government jobs all they're really cracked up to be? Is the job security and benefits really worth it for whatever the cons are? Trying to figure out if this is the route I should be looking at.

So, I've been with the Government for years now. Started in uniform, and now, as a civilian. There are a number of things that must be said about working for the US Gov. as a civilian.
1. The bureaucracy is so huge, so far reaching, it's really quite something to see. Change in Gov. comes about VERY slowly, if at all. This has lead to institutionalized mediocrity and the classic "lazy" government worker. It's quite common-place to see people sitting around, chatting for many HOURS per day about anything BUT work.
2. Leadership is deeply entrenched, and poor performers are "promoted" away when firing them becomes too costly. Want to get in good with the boss? Go golfing with the guy, and join the same clubs. If you think that calling attention to issues that need to be fixed will get you brownie points, think again.
3. There is a never ending baseline of lip-service. You are absolutely expected to be a 'true-believer' in each and every 'program'. While the top-dogs will say so....i.e. "we promote and value diversity", it's still VERY much a good-ol'-boys club.
4. Benefit packages are good, but pay is FAR below private sector.
5. You will expend copious amounts of time protecting yourself from 'leadership', and completely inept management.
6. Personality conflicts are the norm; and if you find yourself on the 'outs' with the boss, you are in for a really rough ride.
7. If they can't terminate you for cause, they'll make you so miserable, (constant office / cube changes / re-orgs PIPs) that you'll go of your own volition.
8. Bosses setting you up for failure is the norm.
9. Nepotism, and cronyism are RIFE! Where I work even just a glance at the distro or the org-chart reveals a phenomenal number of 'husband-wife', cousins, paa-paw, maa-maw, and uncles, nieces all working on the same base. One trick that is used is the "contractor" route. Get the wife a job as a contractor, then they "write" on a Gov. job and... just like that whole families work in the same facility. The other trick is... "I'll hire your wife... if YOU hire my son"... sort of thing.
10. Overqualified people are habitually assigned well below their skill sets. Engineers are consistently pushed into business and management roles for which they are completely ill suited, not to mention untrained and un-educated. Those with business experience, and even advanced degrees find themselves in the bottomless pit of miss-categorized hoards driving forklifts, pushing boxes around and patently degrading and humiliating "task".
11. Nativism is also RIFE! If 'you ain't from 'round heere"... well now, you simply are not going to fit in. Frequently in my building you'll be asked 'what school ja go to'... well, they mean HIGHSCHOOL, and truly, their world-vision ends at the county line. You will be setup for failure, and habitually shunted off to the worst desk, in the worst room at the back of the building. Don't ever rock the boat, and calling OSHA will get you black-listed permanently.

Every job, sector, industry has its pros and cons. I think the overall pros of government jobs outweigh the negatives for me. Especially the benefits, they cannot be beat. It’s one of the few things that offers a pension anymore and that is huge for me. But to each their own, different people want different things and some people could make more than enough to live great and save for retirement in the private sector.

It very much depends on the specific job, of course. And with that, it can depend on the agency or organization (and whether state, local, or federal). But generally speaking you have a good idea going in what is expected of you, and things do tend to be more steady than employment in the private sector. It may not be as lucrative or as exciting, but the excitement can have its downsides.

Benefits for one, stability as well. Any jobs where they make compensation allowances for your schedule (this is especially true for infrastructure jobs) are going to be the most stable ever. Add onto that any professional licensing and training, even more secure.

Job security alone outweighs pretty much most of the cons, whatever they may be. You're not really going to find any job out there that'll give you the guaranteed employment that most government jobs will (caveat usually being grant-funded positions that can go away if the grant permanently ends or dries up).

The benefits are also very difficult to beat. I get pretty good healthcare benefits for a modest monthly sum compared to peers who pay more. Plus, with enough of the right government experience, you could end up being worth more in the private sector so you can technically make it fit into your career goals.

Agree that the stability is huge pro. As a single parent, I made the decision to stay in a government job to have steady income and good healthcare benefits for my children. However, that was a deliberate knowing that I was sacrificing much better pay in the private sector. Although not as common, I have witnessed reductions in force (layoffs) and stagnating wages. The benefits where I am at have been reduced significantly for newer employees. I was grandfathered in and have a full pension with health insurance. However, that is always subject to legislative appropriation. Considering that my state's retirement account is not fully funded, I may not see the full benefit I sacrificed for, so that is also a consideration.
Student loan forgiveness - don't count on it.

I think it depends on the government sector itself. I know Cities that went through (including mine) went through massive layoffs during the 2008s and then again in the 2020s.
The downside to me is the whole last-to-hire, last-to-fire thing. There are people who should have been lit way before, and I have gone through interviews that took up to six months to get a hire.

Definitely good job stability in government. The pay is often lower than the private sector but hard to beat the stability and benefits. But of course it depends on the job

I was just fired from a job with high reviews after 7 years in the private sector by EMAIL. So there is that

Perks outweigh the cons for me. One being cost of living raises; others: benefits package and the GS pay scale.

You can actually watch the bureaucratic gears grinding slowly, almost matrix like. 😆

Read my reply above yours. Im so glad I retired from a government job at 62 years old. (The county of Los Angeles). I get retirement benefits the rest of my life now.

Speaking for Federal only, Government jobs are great up until the point that your get furloughed, or your agency sees funding cuts.

The pros are that you can make an okay salary and decent benefits while skating by - just don't expect the raises and advancement you'd experience in private sector.

My advice: get someone to sponsor you for a TS/SCI and then go get your PMP - you'll make money hand over fist in the private sector.

Even in my relatively short 12-year career, it's changed for the worst. Benefits cost have skyrocketed, mandatory retirement contributions have tripled (for the same benefit), and morale is in the toilet across most (all) agencies. Despite the marketing, the government absolutely does not embrace innovation or creativity.

Lots of cons eith government jobs be very careful. Thats sll im going to say.

I am going to guess this is an american government job? As we do not get student loan forgiveness working for the government in Australia. Unless you in with the politicians, they would be the only ones who could make a HECS/HELP debt disappear.