OPM Director John Berry wants end to Federal pay debate

His goal: to settle once and for all the question of whether federal employees are overpaid compared to the private sector.

From “OPM wants to settle the fed salary debate” by Jason Miller on FederalNewsRadio.com:

“Office of Personnel Management director John Berry wants to once and for all settle the question of whether federal employees are overpaid compared to the private sector.

“He says the flood of recent news stories shows that there is no standard way to compare the public and private sectors. So, he has requested some help, said Berry during the Executive Update 2010 conference sponsored by the Senior Executives Association in Washington.

“Berry says he wants to settle the issue instead of it being debated in the press. Berry didn’t give a time frame for when this research would be finished.

“For some, the evidence couldn’t come fast enough. Over the last month, lawmakers have been trying to freeze federal employee pay at every chance they got.

“Sens. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) and Jim Thune (R-S.D.) offered amendments to the tax extenders legislation that would freeze the pay of federal employees and cap the number of employees. Thune’s amendment also would attempt to collect back taxes from federal employees, while Coburn’s would suspend all non-essential travel, reduce unnecessary printing by non-Defense agencies and sell off unused properties.”

I played highlights of Berry’s speech on the show today; you can hear the entire presentation by clicking the audio link.

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