Many federal workers out-earn private sector labor ..........
By ANDREW TAYLOR Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) - The average federal worker earns about 2 percent more than a private sector worker in a comparable profession, though the government's generous pension system means that overall compensation is significantly higher, a government study released Monday said.
Once pension and health benefits are factored in, the average federal worker reaps 16 percent more in total compensation than do private sector workers.
The Congressional Budget Office study said federal workers in lower-level jobs make more than private sector workers but that those with advanced degrees earn more in the private sector. Federal workers with a high school education or less earn about $4 more an hour than private sector employees in similar jobs.
The CBO study comes as House GOP leader have scheduled a vote this week to extend the current federal worker pay freeze for an additional year and have been pressing to make federal employees contribute more for their pensions.
"While millions of Americans continue to struggle with stagnant wages and high unemployment, government bureaucrats in Washington continue to enjoy significant advantages over those whose tax dollars finance their compensation," read a statement by the office of Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., chairman of the House Budget Committee.
The average benefits package for federal workers, including health insurance and a defined benefit pension plan, costs the government about 48 percent more than for private sector workers in comparable jobs. Defined benefit pensions—in which retirement payments are based on a formula involving wages and length of service—are becoming far less common in the private sector.
The federal government employs about 2.3 million civilian workers, or about 1.7 percent of the U.S. workforce. Total compensation for civilian federal workers costs roughly $200 billion a year. Civilian worker pay has been frozen for the past two years in response to exploding budget deficits.
President Barack Obama has proposed lifting the pay freeze next year but limiting the increase to a small 0.5 percent hike.
Supporters of federal workers say the government has difficulty competing for highly qualified workers like doctors and engineers because federal pay isn't as high. Indeed, federal workers with a professional degree or a doctorate earn, on average, 23 percent less than private sector employees. On the other hand, the government offers far greater job security and comparable benefits.
For workers with a college degree, private and public sector wages are about the same, but the government's benefits package means overall compensation costs about $7 more an hour, on average.
Lower-skill workers with a high school diploma or less fare significantly better as government workers than they would in comparable private sector jobs, with 21 percent higher wages and far better health and pension benefits. Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
- Whirlaway
- 01-30-2012, 05:46 PM
- Whirlaway
- 01-31-2012, 08:27 AM
And newly released infromation form the Congressional Budget Office shows just how inequality in pay is allocated within the Federal Government.
Yet Obama recently gave every federal worker a 2% pay raise !
Here is where Obama's class warfare really exists: the economic divide between Federal Employees and the rest of us suckers who continue to vote for politicans paying off the government union !
How does the compensation of federal civilian employees compare with that of employees in the private sector?
Employees of the federal government and the private sector differ in ways that can affect compensation. Federal workers tend to be older, more educated, and more concentrated in professional occupations than private-sector workers.
CBO's study compares federal civilian employees and private-sector employees with certain similar observable characteristics (described below). Even among workers with similar observable characteristics, however, employees of the federal government and the private sector may differ in other attributes, such as motivation or effort, that are not easy to measure but that can matter a great deal for individuals' compensation.
This analysis focuses on wages, benefits, and total compensation between 2005 and 2010.
Wages
Differences in wages between federal employees and similar private-sector employees in the 2005-2010 period varied widely depending on the employees' level of education.
Benefits
The cost of providing benefits—including health insurance, retirement benefits, and paid vacation—differed more for federal and private-sector employees than wages did, but measuring benefits was also more uncertain.
Total Compensation
Differences in total compensation—the sum of wages and benefits—between federal and private-sector employees also varied according to workers' education level.
http://www.cbo.gov/doc.cfm?index=12696
Yet Obama recently gave every federal worker a 2% pay raise !
Here is where Obama's class warfare really exists: the economic divide between Federal Employees and the rest of us suckers who continue to vote for politicans paying off the government union !
How does the compensation of federal civilian employees compare with that of employees in the private sector?
Employees of the federal government and the private sector differ in ways that can affect compensation. Federal workers tend to be older, more educated, and more concentrated in professional occupations than private-sector workers.
CBO's study compares federal civilian employees and private-sector employees with certain similar observable characteristics (described below). Even among workers with similar observable characteristics, however, employees of the federal government and the private sector may differ in other attributes, such as motivation or effort, that are not easy to measure but that can matter a great deal for individuals' compensation.
This analysis focuses on wages, benefits, and total compensation between 2005 and 2010.
Wages
Differences in wages between federal employees and similar private-sector employees in the 2005-2010 period varied widely depending on the employees' level of education.
- Federal civilian workers with no more than a high school education earned about 21 percent more, on average, than similar workers in the private sector.
- Workers whose highest level of education was a bachelor's degree earned roughly the same hourly wages, on average, in both the federal government and the private sector.
- Federal workers with a professional degree or doctorate earned about 23 percent less, on average, than their private-sector counterparts.
Benefits
The cost of providing benefits—including health insurance, retirement benefits, and paid vacation—differed more for federal and private-sector employees than wages did, but measuring benefits was also more uncertain.
- Average benefits for federal workers with no more than a high school diploma were 72 percent higher than for their private-sector counterparts.
- Average benefits for federal workers whose education ended in a bachelor's degree were 46 percent higher than for similar workers in the private sector.
- Workers with a professional degree or doctorate received roughly the same level of average benefits in both sectors.
Total Compensation
Differences in total compensation—the sum of wages and benefits—between federal and private-sector employees also varied according to workers' education level.
- Federal civilian employees with no more than a high school education averaged 36 percent higher total compensation than similar private-sector employees.
- Federal workers whose education culminated in a bachelor's degree averaged 15 percent higher total compensation than their private-sector counterparts.
- Federal employees with a professional degree or doctorate received 18 percent lower total compensation than their private-sector counterparts, on average.
http://www.cbo.gov/doc.cfm?index=12696