A roundup of some of the comments received this week in the GovExec.com Mailbag. All comments are presented in their original, unedited form.
On Obama administration announces two-year federal pay freeze
How about he also makes an announcement to freeze the cost of my medical insurance and taxes?
Let the cries of outrageous indignation begin.
What about the Czars, Cabinet, White House aides, Congress, Senate, federal judges, bargaining unit employees, etc? If the federal employees are going to be used as an example to save taxpayer dollars, let's make sure ALL federal employees share the pain.
This is coming from a fellow federal employee: stop your whining. It will take sacrifice from all of us to get through this. Don't start whining about the guy over there who you think has a better deal because you don't really know that. The employees where I work, field employees and management alike, for the most part actually welcome this if for no other reason than we don't have to take a 1.4% cut in our operating budget when we are not funded to pay the pay raise. I'm thankful I have a job. And no, I don't think that government workers are overpaid. I'm still just fine with doing my small part to help get us out of this mess.
People should stop whining as the sky is not falling. You can't lose money that you don't have and the alternatives are worst from the congresss such as furloughs, shorter work week (less pay). The move by President Obama is a good one, a cost saving and much more huamane then some other elected offcials.
You know we can sit here and write these comments but here is my thought. Maybe it was time to put a pay freeze. At least I have a job. Also maybe need to look into nonproductive workers versus productive workers. Sometimes I see where overtime is still given out to the select few but management does nothing about it. Its not balanced. The same ones get overtime. They wonder why we have an attitude and they wonder why workers want to leave the government or move to a different agency where they hope its fair because it is not what everyone told me it was going to like. These individuals who get overtime all of the time has made it where its there living. They expect it and are spoiled by it and if they lose it they don't know what to do. I think our agency has failed on issues like that and should take responsibility if the employee falls behind on payments because they forgot what an 80 hr pay check was like.
Who needs more money? We fed's can live on love alone.
The savings is so far exaggerated it must have been calculated by space aliens. With approximately 3 million federal civil servants including postal people times $100,000 salary (which is high) times 1.5% a year = less than $5 billion a year. But than again they have to make it sound loke alot $60 billion in 2 years. Bull! While those FOX news people make millions criticizing us barely making ends meet!
I have decided to help save the government even more money by turning in both my government furnished blackberry and laptop computer I use to work at home after hours and weekends. This has the added benefit that my house will now revert to being my home, and not the office away from the office where I'm expected to be available 24 hours a day.
Mr President what sacrifices are you and your family making? I have never been able to take my kids to Italy or France or Spain, especially when someone else (the American taxpayers) is paying. If you and your family would cut out all of your trips, we could save several billion over the next 2 years.
Any young workers working for the federal govt. should work till their loans are forgiven or they earn their higher degrees and walk. The only advantages of CS over private industry will vanish in the next twenty years. Don't sacrifice long term promises for a higher paycheck now. You will regret it later.
On White House says pay freeze proposal was not a bargaining chip
How could the freeze be used as bargaining chip with GOP if the White House did it separately from bargaining with the GOP? For it to be a bargaining chip, they'd have to get something for it. Giving away the chip is bad bargaining.
Not a bargaining chip! Federal civilians are at the bottom of the economy "food chain". Wall Street bankers, Super-riches, CEOs, private workers, even mortgage outlaws all have higher priority than the hard-working federal civilians. Our leaders pay no respect to our service! This is not an issue of sacrifice that we have already been doing since the first day working for government. This is an issue of respect that we deserve!
On Earmark ban fails in Senate
Here we go. Penny wise and pound foolish Tea Partiers make their statement!. But they will rant and rave as if they are single handedly reducing the deficit. Earmarks and civil servant salaries 1-2% of spending. But the average joe plumber doesn't know this. They can be fooled. They see a target that was set up for them to hate, blame and dump on to make themselves feel better for not having jobs. Big hat no cattle Tea Party... end of the day the deficit will grow because they aren't tackling the issues that caused the deficit in the first place. Choosing to wage two wars and reduce taxes at the same time. Freedom ain't free! But for some its a huge cash cow war chest!!
Talking about speaking from both side of the mouth; this is a true example. on the one hand they will freeze the working people salary but on the other hand they will not freeze the waste of I want my part. I recommend the politicans pay be cut and eliminate their retirement system of one term and receive full benifits and use the money to reduce the deficit.
Of course it failed! Both sides of the aisle rely on this pork and they will fight anyone who tries to take it away. Any talk of cutting spending is a joke played on the American people until Congress bans earmarks.
On Washington reacts to Obama's federal pay freeze
Very funny how the unions are against the pay cut but will still vote for Obama and support his campaign with funds from hard working Americans. Please - you two faced unions reps...get over it!
I appreciate the thoughtful comments from various leaders that recognize not only the need for everyone (including Feds) to contribute to deficit reduction efforts, but also the value of Federal employees and the inherent weakness in taking a piecemeal approach to such a major issue as deficit reduction.
On Pay freeze prompts concerns in Congress
I would like to say that a large majority of the federal workers pay are not as generous as some people think, alot of the private sector makes more money than a lot of federal employees could only dream of making. I wish someone would talk to the American working people to get their in put. After all, we are the ones that will be affected by this freeze. We did not put this country in debt but, are made to suffer because of it. If the taxes don't get us one way, they stick it to us another way. What will happen when people start leaving the federal jobs to seek employment with the state? That's going to be a lot of work un done.
Mr. Connolly epitomizes the culture of victimhood and the belief that somebody else is at fault and should pay. I didn't realize the we federal employees were in need of "sympathy." Grow up, and lead. What ever happened to the idea of shared sacrifice?
Errr. I still say freeze mil pay with civ pay. Why on earth increase it from 1.4 to 1.9 when freezing fed pay? Take that 1.9% and increase combat pay. As far as I'm concerned, combat pay can never be too high.
Here's a question, Senators and Congressmen: how many of your staff vacancies will YOU not hire this year? Will you freeze your employees' pay for two years? Are you willing to cut your staffs' pay as well?
On Locality pay frozen in 2011
This is just as bad as the pay freeze. Health insurance costs have gone skyrocketed, gas continues to stay high, bills aren't any cheaper, and so how can it be said that the Cost of Living hasn't gone up?? Just sayin'. DK
Last year my pay went down due to increases in health insurance costs. They are going up radically again this year. Gas is up, rent is up and who is going to pay for all that? I am making less than I did two years ago and my debts show it. The COLA was supposed to keep us able to pay bills. Promises mean nothing to the debt collector.
On Fiscal panel reinforces pay freeze, changes to federal benefits
The purpose of the Medical overhaul (or so it was conveyed) was to provide adequate, affordable healthcare to ALL AMERICAN workers and their families. Federal workers do not receive some indiscriminate additional benefit that needs to be eradicated. We are workers just like any other worker and are compensate far below what our private sector counterparts receive. Targeting federal workers will continue to foster an environment of discord and disunity and target individuals who sacrifice to keep this country's programs running smoothly and efficiently. The consequences of such will undoubtedly be to devasting to name!
I have read the report and am disgusted that it lumps CSRS and FERS together when it alleges that federal retirement is out of line with private industry, as it glibly proposes to base future retirements on the high five years of earning. So much for honoring commitments, you know like the military claim of health care for life as a recruitment promise. I guess civil service recruitment promises are not worth the paper that they are printed on. The report further talks about introducing a freeze on COLA until age 62 as if this were a new concept. When FERS was created in the during the Regan Administration it already cut retirement by almost 50% compared to CSRS and froze COLA until age 62. In terms of budget savings FERS is already there. Now it is talked about as if it we overly generous. FERS is already a bare bones paltry retirement. If you want to wring out savings from the federal employment system go after CSRS and military retirement, but leave FERS alone. Here's a novel idea, revisit the military REDUX program and expand on it. If any retirement system was completely out of line with private retirement it's military retirement. In spite of all the cuts to working people, the study found cause to cut corporate and high earner income taxes. Politicians are crooks and liars who serve as front men for the corporate thieves that they represent.
This panel is deluded and, after seeing the result, I suspect they are not qualified to evaluate this situation and produce a viable, realistic, effective solution. P.S. Every single person I know who works in the private sector has way better health benefits, retirement, etc. than federal workers.
NEXT STORY: Smokey on the Freeze