On Nov. 29, President Barack Obama proposed a two-year civilian pay freeze for federal employees. It’s expected to take effect on Jan. 1, 2011. In a fact sheet posted on the White House website, the Obama administration estimates the pay freeze will save approximately $2 billion for the remainder of Fiscal Year 2011, $28 billion over the next five years, and more than $60 billion over the next 10 years. “Because of the irresponsibility of the past decade, the President inherited a $1.3 trillion projected deficit upon taking office and an economic crisis that threatened to put the nation into a second Great Depression,” administration representatives said in the fact sheet. “He moved quickly to get the economy moving again. Now, the economy is growing, and we have gained private sector jobs for the past 10 months. But families and businesses are still hurting, and our top priority is making sure that we are doing everything we can to help boost economic growth and spur job creation.” The pay freeze will apply to all civilian federal employees, including those in various alternative pay plans and those working at the Department of Defense—but not military personnel. As of press time, legislators were beginning to respond to the cuts. In a statement to the media, California Republican Darrell Issa, the presumptive chairman of the House committee overseeing federal personnel issues, called the decision “long overdue.”
This article appears in Dec 2-9, 2010.