Federal Managers Association

Press Release

• FMA AT ODDS WITH ADMINISTRATION OVER CIVILAN PAY FREEZE - August 30, 2018
• Alexandria, VA - Today, President Donald Trump formalized an alternative compensation plan calling for a pay freeze for all civilian federal employees for 2019. The alternative compensation plan also eliminates locality pay increases for feds in the upcoming year. Federal Managers Association (FMA) National President Renee Johnson made the following comments on the Trump administration's decision.
  
  
  "We are very disappointed, but not surprised, by the administration’s decision to formally call for a pay freeze for all feds for 2019. This administration has sent several clear messages of antagonism towards federal employees with its Fiscal Year 2019 budget proposal, the Office of Personnel Management’s legislative proposals, and its repeated threat of a government shutdown. It is particularly disappointing in light of the 2.6 percent raise the uniformed military will receive. We fully support the raise for the military, but strongly argue federal employees deserve parity.
  
  
  "Federal managers dutifully spend every day repairing airplanes and ships that protect our national security, processing tax returns and Social Security payments, caring for our veterans, protecting our environment and food supply, and countless other services on behalf of all Americans. They deserve to be recognized and compensated fairly, and we are demoralized by the President’s proposed pay freeze. FMA has endorsed the effort in Congress to provide a reasonable 3.0 percent pay raise with the Federal Adjustment of Income Rates (FAIR) Act, and supports the 1.9 percent pay increase included in the Senate spending package agreed to last month.
  
  
  "The President’s plan sets up a contentious battle in Congress in the coming weeks where we hope members of the Senate will convince their colleagues in the House of Representatives to support a 1.9 percent pay raise. The government cannot and must not try to balance the budget on the backs of federal employees. The federal government must continue to strive to be a model employer. The American public deserves a federal workforce that receives the resources it needs to provide the services our citizens count on. A pay freeze will only deflate federal employees’ morale, hurt employee retention and recruitment, and lead to a lower quality of services from the federal government.”

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