The wage freeze affects all federal workers from TSA employees to Social
Security administrators to federal judges, court clerks, Secret Service
members and FBI agents.
To hear the hue and cry that went up across the land in the face of a
cost-cutting measure that is no more onerous than asking older Americans
to keep working longer before receiving Social Security (or asking
current Social Security recipients to accept a zero cost-of-living
increase for two years in a row) one would think federal workers were
being asked to toil under Dickensian conditions.
At least they have jobs. Ask the 15 million unemployed Americans if
they'd settle for a wage freeze rather than having their benefits cut if
Congress does not act this week. Ask the underemployed and those
working many jobs if they'd like federal employee wages and benefits
rather than their current jobs.
In 2008, the average federal wage for the nation's 1.9 million civilian
workers was $79,197 compared to the average $50,028 for the nation's
full-time private sector workers.
And benefits? Wow. Who wouldn't like three different retirement plans,
including one where retirees receive annuitized payments for the rest of
their life from funds contributed by the employee (or which we
contribute, to be precise).
And this from the federal government employee benefit website:
"Federal employees, retirees and their survivors enjoy the widest selection of health plans in the country."
Too bad all workers don't get that, along with 13 days sick leave each
year; 13, 20, or 26 days of vacation leave each year; 10 days paid
holiday each year; life insurance; family friendly leave flexibility;
employee development; student loan repayment (!); and child care
subsidies - to list a few benefits posted on the website.
No sympathy from this quarter for people who are fully employed, well
represented and protected by a strong union and who enjoy benefits far
and above those that many employed Americans enjoy - not to mention the
unemployed.
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