Federal government workers make less than their private sector counterparts, a new study compiled by federal workers reveals.
WaPo (“Federal employees make average 26 percent less than private workers, Labor agency reports“):
The federal government reported Friday that on average its employees are underpaid by 26.3 percent when compared with similar non-federal jobs, a “pay gap” that increased by about 2 percentage points over the last year while federal salary rates were frozen.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics presented the figures to the Federal Salary Council, an advisory group of federal agency officials, union representatives and outside pay experts.
The numbers are calculated for setting pay raises under the locality pay system used for white-collar employees who work under the general schedule pay system. Some of the money provided by Congress for an annual raise is paid across-the-board while the rest is divided according to the pay gaps for 31 city areas plus a catchall “rest of the U.S.” for areas outside those metropolitan zones.
Under a 2010 law, however, federal salary schedules were frozen for 2011 and will be frozen again in 2012, although “within-grade” raises that are largely based on longevity still are allowed, as are raises after promotions.
“It’s not surprising there’s an increase in the gap because of the pay freeze but it highlights the impact on federal employees that the freeze is having,” said Colleen M. Kelley, president of the National Treasury Employees Union and a member of the council. “There’s no doubt in my mind that it will increase more when the 2012 freeze is in effect.”
The pay gap in the Washington-Baltimore area was calculated at 36.9 percent, slightly below the 38.1 percent reported last year. Officials said a variety of factors could have caused that result, including changes in the mix of jobs and the switch into the general schedule of thousands of Defense Department employees from a separate pay system that is being phased out.
How can this be, you ask? What about all those reports showing that Federal workers earn twice what their private sector counterparts make? That Federal workers make more than state governors? That bureaucrats are overpaid?
Well, it depends on how you look at the numbers. There’s some controversy over how to factor in benefits, for example.
Mostly, though, those other studies are comparing apples to oranges while this one is trying to compare apples to apples. The federal government workforce simply doesn’t look very much like the private sector workforce. It’s almost entirely white collar and college educated. There are a disproportionate number of lawyers, accountants, engineers, and scientists.
