Our country is in the middle of a deep recession with public concern about deficit spending and now the spin doctors and pundits think that federal salaries are too high. I’m a GS-11 level public servant, and all pay tables for federal employees are public information, posted at www.OPM.gov.
Take my job as an example; I’m a Shipbuilding Specialist working at Naval Base San Diego doing government oversight for repair of the Navy ships by contractors working at the local shipyards. My degree is in hard work and on the job training with special training requirements for marine paint inspection, welding inspection, electrical, mechanical, structural, propulsion, combat, navigation, logistical acquisition, technical blueprint reading, repair manuals, and financial contract applications. All of which is inputted, tracked and recorded by me using the latest in a centralized computer data base, for accountability by my co-workers and management.
In order to perform my job I have to work in one of the worlds most dangerous working environments the shipyard and ship board, to keep our ships for the men and women of the US Navy repaired and safe when they perform their missions to keep our country free. If I were to compare my knowledge skills and pay to that of my counter parts at other shipyards or naval maintenance centers in the United States, our current position and salary is not even at the same pay level! So if my federal pay is too high for what I do, please contact me through the San Diego and Imperial Counties Labor Council and walk in my shoes for a day at work, to see if you agree with the pundits.
Saturday, August 21, 2010
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