Government Pay System
Salaries for federal civil service jobs at most agencies are set on the General Schedule, or GS pay scale, which links required experience and level of job responsibility to a system of grades and steps within each grade. Grades start at GS-1 and go up to GS-15. Above grade 15 is the Senior Executive Service. As your grade goes up, so does your salary. A combination of three main factors determines where you are likely to fit on the GS scale:
- Education
A college graduate with a four-year degree typically starts out at the GS-5 (approximately $27,000) or GS-7 ($33,500) levels; whereas someone with a Master’s degree typically starts at a GS-9 ($41,000) or higher. - Experience
Agencies can take previous work experience into account when setting starting salaries. Plus, your salary can also rise quickly as you gain federal experience. For example, you can advance from GS-7 to GS-11 ($49,500) in two years, which is nearly a 50 percent increase in salary. - Where You Live
The federal government employs people all around the country (85 percent of all federal jobs are located outside of the Washington D.C. area) and adjusts pay in areas with higher costs of living. This is called a locality pay rate adjustment.
Starting Salaries for GS-5, GS-7 and GS-9
| City | GS-5 | GS-7 | GS-9 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Atlanta, GA | $32,039 | $39,678 | $48,545 |
| Chicago, IL | $33,639 | $41,669 | $50,969 |
| Dallas, TX | $32,418 | $40,156 | $49,118 |
| New York, NY | $34,582 | $42,837 | $52,398 |
| San Francisco, CA | $36,309 | $44,976 | $55,015 |
| Washington, D.C. | $33,269 | $41,210 | $50,408 |
Raises
Federal employees on the GS scale get cost-of-living adjustments every year. In addition, they receive a congressionally-approved percentage raise that varies based on geographic location. Another way to get a raise in federal service is to move up within the General Schedule. These advancements do not come automatically with the passing of time, but instead are based in part on performance.
Other Pay Systems
Some federal agencies have pay systems that fall outside the General Schedule system. Check the Web sites of individual agencies to determine their salary schedules.
Designed to help a broad audience of job seekers, policy makers and agency leaders, Where the Jobs Are identifies nearly 273,000 mission-critical employment opportunities that will be available in the federal government from October 1, 2009 through September 30, 2012.
