5 ms·

Pay isn’t everything. Government civilian GS employees have an extremely generous benefits package and usually excellent job security. Contractors frequently

by _mlbt 2y ago

Pay isn’t everything. Government civilian GS employees have an extremely generous benefits package and usually excellent job security. Contractors frequently take pay cuts to work directly as a government employee for these reasons.

hobs 2y ago
And now they do not have job security.
ceejayoz 2y ago
That ship has sailed now, though. The benefits and job security can no longer be counted on. Government is gonna have to compete more on salary, or accept worse candidates.
- lotsofpulp 2y ago
  A silver lining in all this upheaval is the reduction of price obfuscation (hopefully) by getting rid of deferred compensation schemes that make it difficult for labor sellers to evaluate the market.
- _mlbt 2y ago
  I said usually for job security because I am familiar with the current administration’s actions, and the benefits have not been touched and would take an act of Congress to change. Trust me, there are still lots of talented individuals who are eager to join the government workforce, even now.
  - ceejayoz 2y ago
    > benefits have not been touched… If you don't count mass firings, sure.
  - Vegenoid 2y ago
    I don’t really trust you on that. Why is the government workforce not more capable if there are lots of skilled people who want to work for them?
  - nothercastle 2y ago
    For poverty wages? In my city government workers with families almost universally qualify for subsidized housing. People in my experience get half my salary, and then half of that goes to housing. Maybe some C tier talent goes to government but not without wfh, pension or other benefits.
    - _mlbt 2y ago
      Federal IT workers are hardly working for poverty wages. In addition to their base salaries, they receive additional locality pay, generous benefits like paid time off, retirement benefits, inexpensive health insurance and life insurance, training and advancement opportunities, and the opportunity to receive monetary and time off awards. It’s not FAANG salaries, but they are very well compensated and the working conditions are usually great.
      - ethbr1 2y ago
        > very well compensated You'd have to be a GS-14 [0] to be north of $150k base salary. That's tech team manager / senior manager, with a post-graduate degree, and 7+ years of experience in the field. [0] https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/pay-leave/salaries-wages/2025/general-schedule/ https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/pay-leave/salaries... > and the working conditions are usually great Really? Because private sector seems a lot more stable these days.
  - bradleyjg 2y ago
    > the benefits have not been touched and would take an act of Congress to change There’s a lot of things that are supposed to take an act of Congress to change.
BeetleB 2y ago
> Government civilian GS employees have an extremely generous benefits package and usually excellent job security. Had. Not have.
- nothercastle 2y ago
  Yep this was true a decade or 2 ago not true anymore. Generous compared to Walmart, sure but not compared to Industry for any type of Technical work.
  - BeetleB 2y ago
    Yeah, I was referring to the job security aspect, given all the layoffs. But yes, the federal package is good, but not fantastic. It's on par with what a typical company provides. Salary is decent, too. Not FAANG, but not below industry average. More or less, just like a typical industry job. State/city jobs tend to have much better benefit packages, but lower pay (often a lot lower). They also tend to be relatively chill workwise.
    - ethbr1 2y ago
      > tend to be relatively chill workwise This feels like something that needed past tense. Some rich asshole I don't know blasting out weekly check-in demands to the org-wide list doesn't sound very chill.
      - BeetleB 2y ago
        > Some rich asshole I don't know blasting out weekly check-in demands to the org-wide list doesn't sound very chill. Context? The comment was about city/state jobs, not federal.
        ethbr1 2y ago
        A Florida man didn't want to feel left out. https://www.flgov.com/eog/news/press/2025/governor-ron-desantis-announces-florida-doge-efforts https://www.flgov.com/eog/news/press/2025/governor-ron-desan...

by _mlbt 2y ago

hobs 2y ago

And now they do not have job security.

ceejayoz 2y ago

That ship has sailed now, though. The benefits and job security can no longer be counted on. Government is gonna have to compete more on salary, or accept worse candidates.

lotsofpulp 2y ago
A silver lining in all this upheaval is the reduction of price obfuscation (hopefully) by getting rid of deferred compensation schemes that make it difficult for labor sellers to evaluate the market.
_mlbt 2y ago
I said usually for job security because I am familiar with the current administration’s actions, and the benefits have not been touched and would take an act of Congress to change. Trust me, there are still lots of talented individuals who are eager to join the government workforce, even now.
- ceejayoz 2y ago
  > benefits have not been touched… If you don't count mass firings, sure.
- Vegenoid 2y ago
  I don’t really trust you on that. Why is the government workforce not more capable if there are lots of skilled people who want to work for them?
- nothercastle 2y ago
  For poverty wages? In my city government workers with families almost universally qualify for subsidized housing. People in my experience get half my salary, and then half of that goes to housing. Maybe some C tier talent goes to government but not without wfh, pension or other benefits.
  - _mlbt 2y ago
    Federal IT workers are hardly working for poverty wages. In addition to their base salaries, they receive additional locality pay, generous benefits like paid time off, retirement benefits, inexpensive health insurance and life insurance, training and advancement opportunities, and the opportunity to receive monetary and time off awards. It’s not FAANG salaries, but they are very well compensated and the working conditions are usually great.
    - ethbr1 2y ago
      > very well compensated You'd have to be a GS-14 [0] to be north of $150k base salary. That's tech team manager / senior manager, with a post-graduate degree, and 7+ years of experience in the field. [0] https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/pay-leave/salaries-wages/2025/general-schedule/ https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/pay-leave/salaries... > and the working conditions are usually great Really? Because private sector seems a lot more stable these days.
- bradleyjg 2y ago
  > the benefits have not been touched and would take an act of Congress to change There’s a lot of things that are supposed to take an act of Congress to change.

BeetleB 2y ago

> Government civilian GS employees have an extremely generous benefits package and usually excellent job security. Had. Not have.

nothercastle 2y ago
Yep this was true a decade or 2 ago not true anymore. Generous compared to Walmart, sure but not compared to Industry for any type of Technical work.
- BeetleB 2y ago
  Yeah, I was referring to the job security aspect, given all the layoffs. But yes, the federal package is good, but not fantastic. It's on par with what a typical company provides. Salary is decent, too. Not FAANG, but not below industry average. More or less, just like a typical industry job. State/city jobs tend to have much better benefit packages, but lower pay (often a lot lower). They also tend to be relatively chill workwise.
  - ethbr1 2y ago
    > tend to be relatively chill workwise This feels like something that needed past tense. Some rich asshole I don't know blasting out weekly check-in demands to the org-wide list doesn't sound very chill.
    - BeetleB 2y ago
      > Some rich asshole I don't know blasting out weekly check-in demands to the org-wide list doesn't sound very chill. Context? The comment was about city/state jobs, not federal.
      - ethbr1 2y ago
        A Florida man didn't want to feel left out. https://www.flgov.com/eog/news/press/2025/governor-ron-desantis-announces-florida-doge-efforts https://www.flgov.com/eog/news/press/2025/governor-ron-desan...