Today, Jason Briefel, Director of Policy and Outreach for the Senior Executives Association (SEA)–representing the interests of over 8,000 career federal executives in the Senior Executive Service (SES), Senior Level (SL), Scientific and Professional (ST) and equivalent positions and other senior career federal leaders, including our General Schedule members (GS 12-15)–released the following statement regarding Briefel’s testimony before the Federal Salary Council today regarding the urgent for pay reform:
“The federal employee compensation system established over 70 years ago is no longer working for the American people. It is failing to incentivize federal service and diminishing the pipeline into federal career leadership. Agencies are less effective and ill-equipped to adequately serve the American people as a result,” Briefel explained. “Unfortunately, the Federal Salary Council, which should be aiding the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) in supporting pay reforms, is held hostage by its member unions set on maintaining the status quo. In SEA’s testimony before the Council, we emphasized how issues like pay compression are weakening the responsiveness of the federal government to compete for talent in a strong labor market and inhibiting leadership development and retention. Ultimately, SEA called for a comprehensive blue-ribbon review of the current pay system and a shift toward an occupation-based, market-oriented pay system, along with targeted, immediate reforms to address pay compression.”
“Trapped in a General Schedule created in 1949, the federal government is not able to compete for professional talent with industry which receives $631 billion in government contracts each year. A fraction of this money could be invested in the federal workforce itself to create lasting change in the competitiveness of the federal government. This is not a novel or partisan idea. Both the Trump Administration and Biden Administration’s President’s Pay Agents have called for statutory reform to federal compensation. Just this week, OPM Director Ahuja bemoaned that the government is competing against itself for talent due to too many disparate pay systems, in addition to competing with outside employers. What we need today is for the unions on the Federal Salary Council to stop standing in the way of widely accepted reforms to federal compensation policy. Every day, talented rising leaders committed to public service leave government out of frustration with bureaucratic rules, antiquated technology, and inadequate pay. These aspiring leaders feel they can be more impactful in the private sector. Our government cannot succeed with that pervasive mentality driven by an archaic pay system that fails to reward a commitment to public service,” Briefel furthered
