Obama to freeze federal wages

For all of you federal workers on this site.

money.cnn.com...

President Obama will announce a two-year freeze in the wages of federal employees Monday, with the intention of saving $60 billion over the next 10 years.

It seems he wants to freeze the federal workforce pay for two years. Even though this has been voted down by congress once or twice it seems he wants to do it anyway. Just a heads up.

reply to post by Everwatcher33


ah, no that CAN NOT happen! I'm on a step program from GS7-9, right now, I make like 32, in two years, I'm expecting to make 58. Now that is significant, and much needed money for me, if Obama does this, then I am like so leaving the country.

Gee I wonder if the President Obama would endourse that all of Congress would take a pay cut and freeze for about 10 years, and propose that a senator or Representative could not make more than the full average of all of the people they represent from their districts, along with little penaltities, not pay taxes, they can only make min wage. I wonder if that can go through.

Heh yeah I hear you, we have a few people like that here. It's unclear right now if it's a pay freeze meaning no cost of living increase or pay freeze in no promotions or grade increases. It's just developing so we probably won't know until tonight.

It's sad though I wonder if most people in this country now that most of the work our government does now is done by contractors? The money we spend on contractors is far far greater than what we pay our federal work force.

reply to post by sdcigarpig



Indeed it probably wouldn't. I read some where once that there was an amendment that was never passed by congress stating that they wouldn't be allowed to vote for their own pay raises. Guess what...it never passed.

This "freeze" will not happen.

Obama is in the pocket of the unions, and he knows good and well that congress will not allow a freeze to occur. I can guarantee that whatever mechanism is in place for such an executive action has built-in administrative "self-destruct" that will prevent it from happening.

It will get lost in the mail, or it will have a "double secret committee vote down" , or there will be a "disagreement in the wording" that will keep it from coming to fruition.

Barack Obama has been bought and paid for by the unions, and this is something the unions haven't paid for.

We private sector workers, who fund ya'all's livelihood, and on top of that are struggling with our own, shed a single collective tear.

the DOW is down, and I guess when it will be announced, I bet the Dow will fall again...

By the way, US economy is recovering and "you shouldn't wory about our economy, there is no crisis anymore" !!

reply to post by MMPI2



It will probably be done by executive order.

Originally posted by NewlyAwakened
We private sector workers, who fund ya'all's livelihood, and on top of that are struggling with our own, shed a single collective tear.

You do know that federal workers pay taxes just like you right? It's just that they work for the government where you work for private industry. But back at you, when you private sector workers loose your job because your greedy company worked itself into the ground the rest of the workers in this country will shed a single tear for you.

Not to mention there are plenty of federal workers who struggle with their bills and lives just like you. Most federal works are GS7 pay grade and below. That's about 32k a year...in most places that isn't that much, but it's enough to get by. At the top of the government is where pay gets bloated and pay cuts and freezes should be aimed at people on the top of the government getting rich.

Originally posted by Everwatcher33
You do know that federal workers pay taxes just like you right?

LOL. And they get paid from taxes. The whole notion that they pay taxes is a joke designed to put real wealth producers (private industry, at least those not in bed with the government) at ease.

Money is not wealth. Wealth (food, clothing, homes, entertainment) is produced by the private sector.

I don't mind some of the fruits of my labor going toward people who provide basic public services (police, fire, teaching, etc.) but I think I can speak for any private-sector taxpayer when I say I wholeheartedly resent government waste. This includes some of my friends working at paper-pushing bureaucratic federal jobs where they boast about how they do nothing but sit around and play games all day.

But keep on complaining that the share of my labor that goes to fund your lifestyle is not being increased. In one ear and out the other, as they say.

reply to post by Everwatcher33


An updated article can be found on CNN or any other news agency if peopl want to find it. I was wrong about the executive order. It seems it will go before congress again. I am interested to see what other cuts he wants to make.

Originally posted by NewlyAwakened

Originally posted by Everwatcher33
You do know that federal workers pay taxes just like you right?

LOL. And they get paid from taxes. The whole notion that they pay taxes is a joke designed to put real wealth producers (private industry, at least those not in bed with the government) at ease.

Money is not wealth. Wealth (food, clothing, homes, entertainment) is produced by the private sector.

I don't mind some of the fruits of my labor going toward people who provide basic public services (police, fire, teaching, etc.) but I think I can speak for any private-sector taxpayer when I say I wholeheartedly resent government waste. This includes some of my friends working at paper-pushing bureaucratic federal jobs where they boast about how they do nothing but sit around and play games all day.

But keep on complaining that the share of my labor that goes to fund your lifestyle is not being increased. In one ear and out the other, as they say.

edit on 29-11-2010 by NewlyAwakened because: (no reason given)

Actually the agency I work for gets paid by fees from the services we sell. We are not tax payer funded. We have cut a lot of things to keep from having to cut people and cost jobs. So how does government waste figure into the agency I work for? Hmm?

Now that there is a massive surplus of educated workers the state and federal governments should begin slashing wages and benefits.

The workers who don't like it can quit, they will be replaced by hard working men and women who are glad to have such a well-paying job. There are millions of such people and they will gladly step up to take the place of those who cannot hack it in the new environment.

reply to post by Everwatcher33



I can't help but think that the organization you work for is somehow VERY heavily subsidized by the taxpayer through whatever cabinet department controls it.

reply to post by NewlyAwakened


Federal employees DO pay taxes, when I was in the Army and after, when I worked for the VA, I STILL had taxes taken out, and trust me, it was a HUGE chunk taken

What's hilarious is that many of the people complaining that they are paying for government salaries actually paid in less income taxes than they received via tax return.

I received about 2000 more than I payed in. Go ahead and burn me at the stake. I payed off medical bills for my daughter being born.

What's the difference anyway, eventually most of that money (either private or public) goes to China anyway....either by borrowing debt or buying Chinese products.

If it's not that...you're paying the bankers.

I agree with the ridiculous overuse of government contractors...
Streamlining that system would save huge money.

Also, after being around military bases for a couple decades,
I would say that streamlining the civilian workforce on the military
bases would save huge amounts of money for the taxpayer. There
is so much waste there, it is unreal.

Lastly, if Congress would accept a pay freeze themselves (way too much to
ask them to accept an actual pay cut, even though most of them are
millionaires or married to millionaires), then the taxpayer would certainly
benefit.

Then, perhaps the US Postal Service wouldn't be closing their doors in rural
areas, poor neighborhoods, and looking at suspending Saturday service.

I realize that with the advent and popularity of email and online messaging
that the mail has slowed, but it still is a vital, necessary service for people.
Especially the older population of this country, most of whom do not use the
Internet.