President Joe Biden signed an executive order on Wednesday that makes federal pay rise for civilian employees effective in 2022. In August, Biden revealed plans to offer civilian government employees a 2.7 percent wage rise in 2022. On Wednesday, the president’s directive was the final step in finalizing any pay adjustments for General Schedule employees.
- Employees on the General Schedule will receive a 2.2 percent federal pay raise across the board in 2022, plus a 0.5 percent locality pay adjustment, for a total 2.7 percent increase.
- The raises begin on Jan. 1 or during the first pay period in January.
- A 2.7 percent average government pay boost is more significant than the 1% increase given to civilian employees in 2021, but it is lower than the 3.1 percent increase in 2020.
- After the Trump administration suspended locality pay changes for 2021, such inequalities may stand out even more.
- Employees in an Executive Schedule job, a political appointment, or chief of mission or ambassador-at-large are all affected by the wage freeze.
- According to the Office of Personnel Management, pay for freeze-covered Executive Schedule personnel and those born at an EX rate by law ranges from $148,500 to $203,500.
- According to OPM estimates, the vice president’s pay will be $235,100 in 2022.
- In recent years, Congress has deviated from the president’s plan in a few instances.
- Again, a 2.7 percent increase in federal salary is the average
- According to the 2021 omnibus funding measure, a salary freeze for top political appointees and the vice president will be in effect until at least Feb. 18, when the current continuing resolution would expire.
In recent years, Congress had departed from the president’s plan on a few occasions, notably in an omnibus spending package at the end of the calendar year, when it proposed its federal pay raise for civilian personnel.
However, Congress has yet to enact funding legislation for 2022. House and Senate Democrats have stated that they would accept Biden’s proposed 2.7 percent federal pay rise even if they had completed their appropriations work this year.
What is the Federal Pay Rise?
Again, a 2.7 percent in federal pay rise is the average. Some civilian employees may earn somewhat more based on their locality pay region, while others may receive a little lower sum, depending on where they work in the country.
However, Congress has yet to enact funding legislation for 2022. House and Senate Democrats have stated that they would accept Biden’s proposed 2.7 percent federal pay rise even if they had completed their appropriations work this year.
Employees in the Baltimore/Washington, D.C. metropolitan region, for example, will receive a 3.02 percent rise in 2022, while those in Miami/Fort Lauderdale, Florida, would receive a 2.44 percent boost.
The most significant federal pay rises will go to employees in the Seattle/Tacoma, Washington, pay area. According to the Office of Personnel Management, their income would grow by 3.21 percent in 2022.
For the first time in 2022, federal employees in Des Moines, Iowa, will get their locality pay rate. In 2020, the president’s pay agent formally recognized Des Moines as its locality pay area. Because the Trump administration did not change locality pay rates for 2021, General Schedule employees in Des Moines got the “rest of U.S.” locality pay for another year.
According to the 2021 omnibus funding measure, a salary freeze for top political appointees and the vice president will be in effect until at least Feb. 18, when the current continuing resolution would expire. The wage freeze might be extended for another year, depending on what legislation Congress approves in February, as has been the case in prior years.
General Schedule:
The wage freeze does not apply to General Schedule employees, including Schedule C employees within that system, Foreign Service employees, and career members of the Senior Executive Service. They have chosen to keep their SES base salary.
Since 2014, when lawmakers added a provision in a 2014 omnibus bill freezing pay rates at 2013 levels, Congress has frozen compensation for political appointees. Since then, the pay freeze clause has become pretty standard appropriations language, appearing in consecutive budget bills and continuing resolutions for the last few years.
Because not all workers are covered by a pay freeze designed for top political appointees, OPM continues to modify Executive Schedule pay rates in compliance with the 2.2 percent across-the-federal pay rise.
Employees at the GS-15 and even GS-14 levels in some locality pay zones whose earnings have been maxed out at the Executive Schedule IX rate will get $176,300 in 2022, indicating a 2.2 percent increase across the board.
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