Author Archive

Nathan Abse

Contributing Editor

Nathan Abse is a writer and editor in Washington, D.C. He has worked for The Washington Post, The Independent (London), Foreign Policy, 1105 Media and other publications.
Nathan Abse is a writer and editor in Washington, D.C. He has worked for The Washington Post, The Independent (London), Foreign Policy, 1105 Media and other publications.
Pay & Benefits

A Labor Economist Predicts Stability in the Fed Pay Trendline, But With a Big Caveat

“There is always a long lag between when higher inflation starts to eat into a fed paycheck and when that paycheck starts to respond to inflation,” one compensation expert says.

Pay & Benefits

Fed Pay and Benefits Could be Hit Hard by Debt Ceiling Wheeling and Dealing

There are a few scenarios that could be bad for federal workers in the debt ceiling negotiations.

Pay & Benefits

'Benefits Envy' May Be Partly to Blame for the Erosion of Fed Compensation

“The sense that public employees have stuff that’s better” than that of private-sector workers persists, says one expert.

Pay & Benefits

Pay and Prestige For Civil Servants: The Historical Advantages—and Disadvantages—of Government Work

The advantages have “helped to recruit and keep some very good people in government work,” according to one academic.

Pay & Benefits

This Is What the Proposed 5.2% Fed Pay Raise Might Look Like With Inflation

Even with a largest in decades pay raise, inflation could keep fed salaries trailing behind the private sector.

Pay & Benefits

It’s No Secret: Fed Pay Still Lags—But Union Leaders Have A Fix

Fed workers shouldn’t be “forced to see your standard of living fall over time,” says the director of public policy for the American Federation of Government Employees.

Pay & Benefits

Pay Caps: Fed Exec Lobby Group Says Reform Is Past Due

“We are stuck with a personnel system mostly put together too many decades ago,” says a policy chief for the Senior Executives Association.

Pay & Benefits

Federal Managers and Recruiters, Take Note: Salaries May Stay Way Behind Inflation's Spiral

Inflation could stymie federal agencies’ efforts to recruit new employees and hold on to existing ones.

Pay & Benefits

Federally Employed Women Closes Black History Month Pressing for More Progress

The group can point to more than a half-century of advocacy, but leaders say equity and inclusion efforts remain critical.

Pay & Benefits

Why Are Federal Courts Denying Hazardous Duty Pay For Feds Forced To Take Risks With COVID?

“On its face, in this case, it looks like one of those situations where hazard pay is denied for narrow, technical reasons,” says one labor historian.

Pay & Benefits

Paid Family Leave: A Benefit Helpful to Just About Everyone—So Why So Slow In Coming?

It’s only in the last few years that feds got 12 weeks of paid parental leave. Now, a pending bill aims to cover caregiving in case of illness.

Pay & Benefits

Here’s Why Employees Stick With A (Federal) Job, and More

Federal employees—and those who recruit them—often laud the excellent benefits that come with working for the government, among other things.

Pay & Benefits

The Debt Ceiling Could Hurt Feds’ Paychecks—But Only If Things Drag On

“Some of the proposed savings Republicans are seeking might come from federal employees’ compensation,” one fed advocate says.

Pay & Benefits

Social Security: Could the New Congress’s Sharp Divide Lead to Compromise on Reform?

Social Security manages a huge chunk of what millions of fed families depend on for retirement, disability and survivor benefits, including the majority of current workers onboarded since the 1980s under the Federal Employees Retirement System.