NPR Reports High School Grads Can Succeed in the Federal Government

Here's some info on the federal government's pay and benefits practices that we should pay attention to from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO). If you have a high school diploma and want to get ahead - don't go to a fast food chain - go work for the federal government.

Overall, the federal government paid 2 percent more in total wages than it would have if average wages had been comparable with those in the private sector, after accounting for certain observable characteristics of workers.



A quick rundown:

High School Grads Go Work for the Government

• Federal civilian workers with no more than a high school education earned about 21 percent more, on average, than similar workers in the private sector.

Bachelors' Degree Federal Benefits Rock

• Average benefits for federal workers whose education ended in a bachelor's degree were 46 percent higher than for similar workers in the private sector.

PhD or Professional Degree Salaries Lower

• Federal employees with a professional degree or doctorate received 18 percent lower total compensation than their private-sector counterparts, on average.

And for the Taxpayer . . .

On average, the benefits earned by federal civilian employees cost 48 percent more than the benefits earned by private-sector employees with certain similar observable characteristics.

Read more at: http://www.cbo.gov/doc.cfm?index=12696