I have thoughts regarding the proposed pay freeze- yes another post about this subject!
First and foremost there’s this constant overhanging battle that an employee of the government has: trying to prove oneself that they are WORTH every dime they are paid and are putting all their effort into the good of the country.
Secondly and most recently, it seems as though we (federal employees) were having to defend our work and salary compensations as we transitioned from NSPS to GS. For a few who may have tweaked the system in their favor (or another’s), the rest of us had to pay with the scarlet letter of being someone in the new GS interim system. The over paid. The lazy. The “you get paid so much so when we evaulate your performance for the year your recognition will include your transition salary bump to make it fair.”
And thirdly, but surely not lastly, you will now have the stigma of being on a pay freeze in an attempt to offset the deficit because you get paid too much as it is and if the private sector has suffered- so shall you. But we’re not going to touch the military.
My thoughts are running rampant on this issue. It’s not the fact that we are on a pay freeze but the steps leading up to it and the reasons I have read for it and the fact that so far, federal salaries have been targeted. I can never speak for others but I can certainly speak for myself when I work VERY hard in the best interest of the public and I am effective at protecting those laws that govern the civilian sector, advising on the best use for funds, and protecting those principles of a meritorious system.
I’m just saying that the stigma hurts more than the pay freeze.
I hear you, Nichole. Govies are easy targets…but I am hoping that we will see a generational shift as a fresh influx of government employees enter the workforce over the next 5-10 years (people like you!). So hang in there…everything ebbs and flows…and public support for public service will come back around!