The Obama administration on Monday announced that it will freeze the pay for federal civilian workers for two years.
The pay freeze will apply to all civilian federal employees, including those in various alternative pay plans working at the Defense Department, but not military personnel, Obama said.
The president in February proposed a 1.4 percent pay increase for federal civilians and military personnel in his 2011 budget proposal. But recent proposals, including one by Obama's bipartisan deficit commission, recommended freezing federal pay to help the government reduce the nation's growing deficit. The administration said Monday that the freeze will save the government $28 billion during the next five years.
"In these challenging times, we want the best and brightest to join and make a difference," Obama said. "These are also times where all of us are called on to make some sacrifices, and I'm asking the civil servants to do what they've always done -- play their part."
What's your response to the pay freeze? What impact will it have on the government's ability to recruit and retain talented personnel to the federal IT ranks in the coming years?
Brittany Ballenstedt
Brittany Ballenstedt writes Nextgov's Wired Workplace blog, which delves into the issues facing employees who work in the federal information technology sector. Before joining Nextgov, Brittany covered federal pay and benefits issues as a staff correspondent for Government Executive and served as an associate editor for National Journal's Technology Daily. She holds a bachelor's degree in journalism from Mansfield University and originally hails from Pennsylvania. She currently lives near Travis Air Force Base, Calif., where her husband is stationed.
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