by Flack » Sat Sep 01, 2018 1:25 pm
A little explanation for RealNC, whom I suspect may not fully understand the issue.
I'm not exactly sure where to start. Each year, the cost of "things" (food, rent, and services) increase due to inflation. The US Department of Labor (among others) track these increases. The difference (typically an increase) between two dates is known as a cost of living difference. According to the Department of Labor's website, the cost of living adjustment between July 2018 and July 2018 is approximately 3% (
link). That means that, on average, things cost 3% more this year than they did least year. That also means that unless your salary has increased over the past year by 3% or more, you are essentially making less money than you were last year due to inflation.
Something you may or may not know is that most federal civilian workers (such as myself) no longer get performance based pay raises. (If you really want, I can go into the details in regards to GS vs. FG vs. Core Comp pay bands.) In the past, most federal workers received a yearly "step" increase, but that no longer happens. The way it works now is, whatever salary you start with is essentially the salary you'll have as long as you're in that same position. Today, the only standard raise most federal employees get on a yearly basis is the relatively paltry cost of living increase. So even though the cost of living has gone up 3% since last year, federal employees were only set to get a 2.1% increase. And now we're getting a 0% increase.
As part of his announcement, President Trump announced that this will not affect his plan to attract and retain the best and brightest employees. That's bull. I know several government employees who have left federal service due to low pay compared to comparable civilian jobs. When I was working in security, the kid I trained left for a position that paid 2 1/2x what I was making. Most of the people I know that still work for the government do so because of benefits, retirement, or a sense of dedication and/or loyalty to our country, not because they're getting rich. It's already difficult to attract the "best and brightest" when civilian jobs pay so much more, but when they see things like "oh and the president might cancel your raise on a whim," forget about it.
At this point, my co-workers and I are essentially in survival mode, hoping to make it until 2020 and come up for air then, hoping the damage that's been done isn't permanent.
A little explanation for RealNC, whom I suspect may not fully understand the issue.
I'm not exactly sure where to start. Each year, the cost of "things" (food, rent, and services) increase due to inflation. The US Department of Labor (among others) track these increases. The difference (typically an increase) between two dates is known as a cost of living difference. According to the Department of Labor's website, the cost of living adjustment between July 2018 and July 2018 is approximately 3% ([url=https://www.bls.gov/cpi/latest-numbers.htm]link[/url]). That means that, on average, things cost 3% more this year than they did least year. That also means that unless your salary has increased over the past year by 3% or more, you are essentially making less money than you were last year due to inflation.
Something you may or may not know is that most federal civilian workers (such as myself) no longer get performance based pay raises. (If you really want, I can go into the details in regards to GS vs. FG vs. Core Comp pay bands.) In the past, most federal workers received a yearly "step" increase, but that no longer happens. The way it works now is, whatever salary you start with is essentially the salary you'll have as long as you're in that same position. Today, the only standard raise most federal employees get on a yearly basis is the relatively paltry cost of living increase. So even though the cost of living has gone up 3% since last year, federal employees were only set to get a 2.1% increase. And now we're getting a 0% increase.
As part of his announcement, President Trump announced that this will not affect his plan to attract and retain the best and brightest employees. That's bull. I know several government employees who have left federal service due to low pay compared to comparable civilian jobs. When I was working in security, the kid I trained left for a position that paid 2 1/2x what I was making. Most of the people I know that still work for the government do so because of benefits, retirement, or a sense of dedication and/or loyalty to our country, not because they're getting rich. It's already difficult to attract the "best and brightest" when civilian jobs pay so much more, but when they see things like "oh and the president might cancel your raise on a whim," forget about it.
At this point, my co-workers and I are essentially in survival mode, hoping to make it until 2020 and come up for air then, hoping the damage that's been done isn't permanent.