Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Federal pay freeze extension to three years all but a done deal with Senate bill

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/federal_government/federal-pay-freeze-extension-to-three-years-all-but-a-done-deal-with-senate-bill/2013/03/12/c650c752-8b3c-11e2-9f54-f3fdd70acad2_story.html?wpisrc=nl_fedinsider

Just when the walloping of federal workers seemed to have reached a peak — BAM! — here comes an unexpected blow from the left.

At almost the same time, the workers were the target of additional, albeit not surprising, hits from the right.

A temporary funding measure, released by Sen. Barbara Mikulski, chairwoman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, includes an extension of the basic federal pay -rate freeze to three years, something federal employee organizations and their Democratic allies in Congress have vigorously fought.

Just last week, Mikulski, a Maryland Democrat with a strong history of supporting the federal workforce, told the Federal Diary, "I'll be working my earrings off to fight the extension of the federal pay freeze included in the House-passed continuing resolution."

Precisely because it is in the bill passed largely by House Republicans, federal employees see no reason for the extension to be in a bill promoted by Senate Democrats, although the Senate measure is bipartisan.

"This is not a happy day for me, and it is not a happy day for the millions of people who work diligently for the federal government," Mikulski told the Senate on Tuesday, her tone subdued.

"I think this is a terrible mistake," she added. She believed she had no choice but to make a deal with the Republicans.

"Reluctantly," she said to the workforce, "the way I serve you is to make sure there is no government shutdown."


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