More and More Federal Employees Earning $150k a Year

by Wesley Fox The Institute has previously put the spotlight on excessive salaries for Illinois state employees, but now it appears federal employees are also being paid quite generously. According to USAToday the number of federal employees earning $150,000 or more has grown tenfold since 2005.  In 2010, approximately 82,034 federal workers earned $150,000 or more, compared to only 7,420...

by Wesley Fox

The Institute has previously put the spotlight on excessive salaries for Illinois state employees, but now it appears federal employees are also being paid quite generously.

According to USAToday the number of federal employees earning $150,000 or more has grown tenfold since 2005.  In 2010, approximately 82,034 federal workers earned $150,000 or more, compared to only 7,420 in 2005.  Workers with 15 to 24 years experience saw their salaries increase 25 percent in the same time period, compared with a 9 percent inflation rate.

Even with the dramatic rise in federal worker salaries, President Obama has proposed an additional 1.4 percent raise for the 2.1 million strong federal workforce for next year.  Some, like Rep. Jason Cheffetz of Utah are questioning why federal workers are seeing their pay increase while private sector workers have been forced to cutback in recent years.