Clinton sticks with 3.8 percent across-the-board pay raise

Despite pressure to give federal employees a higher raise, President Clinton is sticking with a 3.8 percent across-the-board pay increase for civil servants next year.

Under federal law, Clinton had until Sept. 1 to exercise his authority to set a different raise to take effect Jan. 1, 2000. A White House spokeswoman said Clinton chose not to exercise that authority.

The 3.8 percent across-the-board increase is based on a formula prescribed in federal law. Under that formula, the Jan. 1, 2000 increase was based on the change in the Labor Department's Employment Cost Index from September 1997 to September 1998, minus 0.5 percent. The change in the ECI for that period was 4.3 percent, so the across-the-board increase was set at 3.8 percent.

In addition to the across-the-board increase, federal employees will receive an increase in locality pay based on the cost of labor in their areas. In his proposed budget for fiscal 2000, Clinton said the total average pay increase would be 4.4 percent-the 3.8 percent across-the-board increase plus an average 0.6 percent increase in locality pay.

But Congress may boost the total raise to 4.8 percent. Congress has already approved a 4.8 percent pay raise for military personnel. Rep. Steny Hoyer, D-Md., is trying to ensure that there is civilian-military pay parity. A Hoyer spokeswoman said the congressman will try to get language into the fiscal 2000 Treasury-Postal appropriations bill mandating a total 4.8 percent civilian pay raise next year.

Clinton himself could still increase locality pay for civilian workers so that the total raise-across-the-board plus locality-equals 4.8 percent. The President has until the end of November to set locality pay for next year. He could increase the average rise in locality pay from 0.6 percent to 1 percent.

Clinton used his alternative pay authority to lower the civilian pay raise for 1998. The change in the Employment Cost Index called for a 2.8 percent across-the-board increase that year. Clinton instead granted a 2.3 percent across the board increase plus a 0.5 percent average locality pay increase.

He originally planned to follow suit in 1999 with a 3.1 percent total pay increase, including both across-the-board and locality increases. But he changed his mind and followed the ECI-based formula, which called for a 3.1 percent across-the-board increase. He tacked on a 0.5 percent average increase in locality pay for a total raise in 1999 of 3.6 percent.