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发帖数: 29846 | 1 In contrast to President Obama’s budget which included a 0.5% Federal
employee (GS) pay raise in 2013, Congress has elected to exclude any federal
pay raise provisions for next year from its annual government appropriation
bills. The GS pay scale covers all federal workers, including civilian
Defense Department employees, but does not apply to military personnel,
government contractors, postal workers, members of Congress, Congressional
staffers, or federal court judges and workers.
The House Appropriations Committee, responsible for drafting the house
federal budget proposal, advanced legislation via the Financial Services and
General Government spending bill that does not contain a pay raise for
federal workers in 2013. The Senate’s version of the annual appropriations
legislation also omitted provisions for federal pay raises in 2013.
Following two years of pay freezes, many federal and state employees on the
GS pay scale will be bitterly disappointed with another year of pay
constraints. However critics of further government spending have said
extending the current pay freeze is the most prudent course of action, as
the government tackles mounting debt, a presidential election and a tough
economy.
“For a bill that is largely comprised of salaries and expenses for
numerous federal agencies, this allocation, if enacted into law, would
result in a substantial reduction in services to the public, severely hinder
many very basic functions of government and cause furloughs, layoffs and
vacancies at a time when employment remains the nation’s top concern,”
said committee ranking member Rep. Norman Dicks (D-Wash.).
“We get these false statements that federal employees are making more
money than the private sector…..I don’t know what federal employees they’
re talking about. I know the ones in my office aren’t.”said Rep. Elijah
Cummings (D-Md.), the ranking member on the Democrats on the House Oversight
and Government Reform Committee
A 2013 Pay Raise Still Possible
Despite the lack of provisions for a 2013 GS pay raise in both the House and
Senate bills, federal workers may still get a pay hike in 2013. The
president has the authority to determine a raise based on the Employment
Cost Index if Congress fails to explicitly block a pay raise. Further a pay
raise can also be proposed in other bills, which are funded differently. No
such bills are currently active in Congress, but could be proposed before
the final raise (or lack thereof) is set in stone at the end of September
2012.
If GS levels remain unchanged, then the only way for a 2013 pay rise is a
step increase or promotion to a higher GS grade level. |
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