Romney Goes After Federal Employees in Fiscal Plan

My former job; before the one I have now, I was a federal employee. I worked for the DoD. The job was a dead end-no chance of ever being promoted. Before the job was staffed with federal employees, it was staffed with private sector. The DoD made a decision that some fiscal cuts were in order. So the private sector workers in that specific department were all terminated. The lowest paid private sector employee was earning $26/hour. Once the job became federalized, the starting pay went to $14.31 per hour...with no chance of ever being promoted. They didn't hire enough people to fully staff the job, so overtime was mandatory. Many of us were working 50-60 and sometimes even 70 hours per week. Similar jobs in the private sector were paying (in that area) anywhere from $12 to as much as $31 per hour. Some had benefits, some did not. I did a study for a job I had many years ago when I first left the military. The topic was a cost saving analysis on government contracting versus federalizing the workforce. The evidence was overwhelming that government saves a LOT of money when it federalizes. Contractors make a significant amount more than their federal counterparts. Don't trust the word of Obama or Romney or me or anyone else. Do some research. The numbers are out there and they are available to anyone who looks into them. Regardless of who you like as POTUS, federal workers by and large do not earn more than their counterparts in the private sector.

Some other interesting things about federal workers

-Most have either decades of experience, typically gained through military service, or college degrees, or both

-Many federal agencies have a policy that in order to promote, one must continuously improve. In other words, if you want to climb the ladder, you have to take classes in your field. Many agencies even begin the process of pushing people out who are becoming too stagnant. This flies in the face of the suggestion that federal workers are lazy, ignorant, etc.

-Many people in the private sector begrudge federal workers for getting things such as cost of living increases but no one begrudges the military, who get the same increases.

As with all facets of life, there are some deadbeats in the federal service. There are some leeches and some undeseirables. But that's a fact of life in every manner of speaking.

My political affiliation tends to fall in the middle on many issues but I think it is clear that many on the right are looking for a "bogeyman" to point to as being the problem. Many are pointing to federal workers and the fact is, it is unwarranted and undeserved.

And yes, I am a current federal worker. I also have a M.S. degree, am an honorably discharged military veteran, have taken over 20 courses independently that are in the field that I work in, and am preparing to begin work on a M.A. degree int he field that I work in.

MW of MD 8:17AM August 14, 2012