o Congress of the United State, 

... Congressional Budget Office 

Washington, D.C. 

BACKGROUND PAPER NO. 18 Executive Compensation 

in the 

Federa,1 Government 

January 1977 

EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION IN THE 

FEDERAL GOVERNMENT 

The Congress of the United States 

Congressional Budget Office 

Por sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U,S, Government Printing Office 

Washington, D.C, ~0402 - Price $1.05 

Stock No, 05~-070-03871-~ 

PREFACE 

Compensation of the civilian work force of the 

federal government is a subject of major budgetary 

significance with a current annual civilian payroll 

of about $42.5 billion. The Congressional Budget 

Office has devoted continuing analytic effort to 

developments in federal pay and benefits and their 

effect on the Congressional budgetary process. 

While executive compensation represents a 

relatively small portion of the total payroll it 

has important implications for the management of 

federal programs. There is considerable interest 

in the subject at this time because of the recently 

published report of the third quadrennial Commission 

on Executive, Legislative, and Judicial Salaries. 

The President's recommendations to be submitted with 

his budget for fiscal year 1978 will become effective 

thirty days thereafter unless otherwise acted on by 

the Congress. The purpose of this paper is to 

provide Members of the Congress and their staffs with 

some background material on the nature and scope of 

executive compensation in the federal government. 

The paper was prepared by Earl A. Armbrust of 

the Management Programs Division of the Congressional 

Budget Office, under the supervision of Howard M. 

Messner and Seymour D. Greenstone. Betty Ripple 

typed the drafts. 

January 1977 

Alice M. Rivlin 

Director 

iii 

TABLE OF CONTENTS 

Preface 

Summary 

Chapter I. Executives in the Federal 

Government--The Universe .... 

Chapter II. Executive Compensation--

The Current System . .. ... 

Chapter III. Executive Pay and Benefits 

in the Non-Federal Sector ..... 

Chapter IV. Policy Options on Executive 

Compensation . . . . . . . . .... 

Appendix. 1974 Compensation Comparison for 

Supergrades ........... . 

v 

iii 

ix 

1 

8 

18 

25 

33 

LIST OF TABLES 

1. Selected Executive Compensation Positions 

2. Distribution of Executive Compensation 

Employees in the Executive Branch . . 

3. Distribution of Executive Compensation 

Positions in the Legislative Branch . 

4. Distribution of Executive Compensation 

Positions in the Judicial Branch 

5. The First Quadrennial Review 

6. Second and Third Quadrennial Reviews 

7. Rate Range 

8. Differences Between Rates on the General 

3 

5 

6 

7 

9 

11 

13 

Schedule and Actual Supergrade Salaries 13 

9. Comparison of Mean Salaries--1974 . 

10. Compensation (High and Medium Size 

Corporations) for Selected Executive 

Positions . . . . . . . . . 

11. Estimated Effect of Splitting the 

General Schedule . . . 

12. Components of Annual Cost Increase 

13. Annual Impact of Alternative Courses 

to Increase Executive Salaries 

vii 

19 

21 

23 

31 

32 

SUMMARY 

The President's budget for fiscal year 1978 will 

include recommendations for increasing the salaries 

of senior officials of the executive branch, Members 

of Congress, and federal judges. The President's 

recommendations, based on his consideration of the 

December 1976 report of the third quadrennial Commission 

on Executive, Legislative, and Judicial Salaries, will 

affect the pay of about 23,500 federal officials: 

o 2,350 top executives directly within the 

purview of the quadrennial Commission's 

review. 

o 9,050 senior rank officials of all three 

branches in "supergrade" positions (grades 

16, 17, and 18 of the General Schedule or 

equivalents in other pay systems). II 

o 12,100 employees below the supergrade 

category (step 7 and above of grade 15), 

whose salaries, while not under the Executive 

Schedule, are not to exceed Level V of the 

Executive Schedule. 21 

Rates of pay for deral executives are now 

determined under two basically different systems. 

The level of compensation for the top echelon--

Executive Schedule, Members of Congress, and judges 

--is reviewed once every four years by a commission 

II General and flag rank officers of the uniformed 

services are not included in these figures. 

~I The October 1976 pay adjustment increased the 

maximum pay under the General Schedule and related 

schedules to $39,600 even though Executive Level V 

remained at $37,800. However, this situation will 

exist only until the next annual adjustment unless 

some further action is taken. 

ix 

81-488 0 - 77 - 2 
appointed specifically for the purpose. About 20 

percent of those receiving executive compensation 

come within the purview of the Commission on 

Executive, Legislative, and Judicial Salaries. 

Pay for the other 80 percent in supergrade or 

equivalent positions is determined by procedures 

under the General Schedule--either directly or indirectly through other pay schedules and positions 

which are linked to it. In principle, General 

Schedule pay is designed to be comparable with private 

enterprise rates and to maintain distinctions between 

rates based on differences in work and performance. 

There is no similar requirement for the salaries set 

under the "Quadrennial Review." 

Since February 1969 officials within the direct 

purview of the quadrennial Commission have received 

only one pay adjustment of 5 percent in October 1975. 

During the same period pay for most of the federal 

work force increased by 65.4 percent and the Consumer 

Price Index has risen by 53.3 percent. The restraining 

effect of Executive Schedule pay on supergrade pay has 

resulted in a phenomenon referred to as "salary 

compression.!! More than 20,000 employees received 

the same salary of $39,600 despite differences in 

levels of work and responsibility among them. 

Recent studies indicate that the compensation of 

federal executives needs to be increased if the 

government is to be competitive with non-federal 

employees. It is relatively easy to identify 

individual cases where inadequate compensation made 

it difficult to recruit talented individuals for top 

level positions or resulted in the loss of senior 

personnel through resignation and early retirement. 

However, the longer term implications of the current 

situation are dif cult to assess. Quanti able data, 

particularly regarding supergrades, is very limited. 

The President's recommendations will become 

effective thirty days after transmittal of the budget 

unless otherwise acted on by the Congress. Within the 

thirty-day period, the Congress may: 

x 
o Disapprove all or part of the President's 

recommendations by resolution of either 

House; and/or 

o Enact gislation which establishes alternative rates of pay for all or part of the 

President's recommendations. 

Compared to the overall federal civilian payroll 

of $42.5 billion, the differences in the costs of 

various approaches to adjusting executive pay are 

relatively small. The total annual cost of increasing 

executive, legislative, and judicial salaries could 

range between $61 million and $150 million--depending 

on the specific rates which might be adopted. At 

least 60 percent of the cost increase would be for the 

20,800 executives and other employees whose salaries 

are now frozen at $39,600 by past linkage to the 

Executive Schedule. 1/ 

Congress has several alternatives in changing 

executive, legislative, and judicial salaries. The 

annual cost impact may be illustrated under three 

general options--others are possible, including no 

increase at all. 

Option 1: Follow the past Congressional practice 

of linking salary increases to annual 

General Schedule adjustments (including 

the 4.83 percent for fiscal year 1977). 

This would increase the Executive Level 

V salary from $37,800 to $41,800. 

Total annual cost for all positions 

affected would be $61 million. 

1/ For the past two years, supergrade employees have 

received salary adjustments equal to the average 

percentage increase for all General Schedule 

employees. However, the level of the supergrade 

salaries remains below that speci ed in the 

General Schedule as a result of historical linkage 

to Executive Level V positions. 

xi 
Option 2: Adopt the recommendations of the third 

quadrennial Commission on Executive, 

Legislative, and Judicial Salaries. 

This would increase the Executive 

Level V salary to $49,000. Total 

annual cost for all positions affected 

would be $130 million. 

Option 3: Adopt the recommendations of the 

President's Panel on Federal 

Compensation (December 1975) by 

allowing the supergrade salaries 

to increase to the comparability 

rates currently specified in the 

General Schedule with corresponding 

increases in other top level 

positions. 4/ This would increase 

Executive Level V pay to $55,200. 

Total annual cost for all positions 

affected would be $150 million. 

i/ Assumes that pay rates related to the General 

Schedule would be increased to comparable levels 

and that the pay of Senators, Congressmen, Judges, 

and executive branch officials under the Executive 

Schedule would be increased to essentially restore 

the 1968 relationship to the rate for GS-18 under 

the General Schedule. 

xii 
CHAPTER I EXECUTIVES IN THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT--

THE UNIVERSE 

Senior civilian management of the federal 

government consists of about 11,400 people. There 

are different ways to define an "executive" in the 

federal government. For purposes of the analysis 

in this paper, "executive compensation" will refer 

to the pay and benefits of: (1) Executive Schedule 

officials and supergrades in the executive branch, 

(2) Members of Congress and senior legislative 

employees receiving compensation at Executive 

Schedule and supergrade equivalents, and (3) Judges 

and senior judicial staff receiving compensation at 

Executive Schedule and supergrade equivalents. 

Those receiving executive compensation represent 

less than one-half of 1 percent of the total federal 

civilian work force of about 2.8 million persons. 

Their pay and benefits amount to approximately $490 

million or about 1.5 percent of the amount for the 

total civilian work force. 

As used in this paper, "executive compensation" 

does not include the salaries of General Schedule 

employees below the supergrades. However, some 

12,100 civil servants in Grade 15 (step 7 and above) 

or the equivalent will also be affected by Congressional 

action on executive pay. As explained more fully in 

the next chapter, they have flasterisk" or flpaper" 

salaries higher than their actual salaries, and 

revision of the Executive Schedule will allow their 

actual salaries to rise. 

THE EXECUTIVE BRANCH 

About 78 percent of the federal officials 

receiving executive compensation are employed in 

the executive branch. Of these 9,000 officials, 

about 850 are compensated at rates specified in a 

statutory "Execut i ve Schedule, II which is composed 

1 
of five levels (I through V in descending order of 

pay). 1/ Most of these officials are Presidential 

appointees who provide political leadership to 

executive departments and independent agencies. 

Executive Schedule positions include Cabinet 

Secretaries, Assistant Secretaries, and Admin 

trators of major independent agencies. As of 

October I, 1976, the following salaries were in 

effect: 

1/ To be precise, 505 officials are paid under the 

Executive Schedule, and 339 are paid equivalent 

salaries under other pay systems. See Table 2. 

2 
TABLE 1. SELECTED EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION POSITIONS 

Position 

President of the United States 

Vice President of the United 

States 

Chief Justice of the United 

States 

Speaker of the House of 

Representatives 

President pro tempore of the 

Senate 

Majority and Minority Leadership of the Senate and 

House of Representatives 

Cabinet Officers, Associate 

Justices of the Supreme 

Court, Postmaster General, 

and Special Representative 

for Trade Negotiations 

Deputy Secretaries of Defense 

and State, Deputy Attorney 

General, Senators and 

Congressmen, Secretaries 

of the Mil Departments, 

Administrators of major 

independent agencies, 

Comptroller General, and 

Judges of U.S. Courts of 

Appeal, U.S. Court of 

Claims, and U.S. Court of 

Customs and Patent Appeals 

Under Secretaries of Cabinet 

Departments Deputy Administrators major independent agencies, Chairmen of 

Regulatory Commissions, and 

Judges of the U.S. District 

Courts and U.S. Customs 

Court 

Assistant Secretaries of 

Cabinet Departments and 

equivalent positions in 

major independent agencies 

Chiefs of major bureaus 

3 

Salary 

$200,000, plus $50,000 personal 

expense allowance, plus $40,000 

travel allowance 

$65,000, plus $10,000 expense 

allowance 

$52,000 

Level I, $63,000 

Level II, $44,600 

Level III, $42,000 

Level IV, $39,900 

Level V, $37,800 
The remalnlng 8,100 senior officials belong 

primarily to the category known as "supergrades" 

in the classified civil service (grades 16, 17, 

and 18 of the General Schedule) or are counterparts in other pay systems; e.g., Postal Service, 

Foreign Service, and the Veterans Administration's 

Department of Medicine and Surgery. About twothirds of the group have career or tenured status 

while the other one-third serve at the pleasure 

of the appointing official. ~/ 

~/ For further discussion of federal executives, 

see U.S. Civil Service Commission, Executive 

Manpower in the Federal Service, September 1975. 

4 
TABLE 2. DISTRIBUTION OF EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION EMPLOYEES IN 

THE EXECUTIVE BRANCH ~/ 

Executive Level Q/ 

Salary: Title 5: 

I $63,000 12 

II 44,600 22 

III 42,000 65 

IV 39,900 267 

V 37,800 139 

505 

Supergrades 

General 

Salary: Schedule: 

GS-18 $39,600 327 

GS-l'i 39,600 927 

GS-16 39,600 3,207 

4,461 

Super grade Equivalents 

Distributed as Follows: 

Postal Service e/ 

Scientific and Technical 

Foreign Service 

Veterans Administration 

Miscellaneous 

Total 

Number 

Equivalents: 

1 

47 

51 

113 

127 

339 

Number E./ 

Equivalents: 

681 

530 

2,438 

3,649 

Number 

160 

1,883 

1,336 

54 

216 

.3,649 

Total: 

13 

69 

116 

380 

266 

844 

Total: 

1,008 

1,457 

5,645 

8,110 

Grand 

Total: 

844 

8, no 

8,954 

Data derived from information in the Report of the Commission 

on Executive, Legislative, and Judicial Salaries (December 1976). 

Q/ Excludes 11 executive level positions in legislative branch 

agencies. 

£/ Executive level officials listed by position in Title 5 of the 

U.S. Code and equivalent positions authorized by other statutes. 

E./ Super grade officials paid under the General Schedule and 

equivalent salary levels in other pay systems. 

~/ The Commission on Executive, Legislative, and Judicial Salaries 

did not consider U.S. Postal Service compensation which is 

also excluded from CBO cost estimates. Salaries for Postal 

Service executives range from $32,800 to $59,450. 

5 

81-488 0 77 - 3 
THE LEGISLATIVE BRANCH 

The top !lexecutive!l level in the legislative 

branch represents about 12 percent of all federal 

officials receiving executive compensation.' This 

level includes 535 Senators and Representatives and 

4 nonvoting Delegates and Commissioners. In addition, 

about 800 staff members in the legislative branch 

draw compensation equivalent to Executive Schedule 

and supergrade pay levels. Most of these employees 

either are on the staffs of the individual Senators 

and Representatives or are senior staff directors of 

Congressional committees and subcommittees. The 

remainder are found in the legislative agencies--

General Accounting Office, Library of Congress, 

Government Printing Office, Architect of the Capitol, 

Office of Technology Assessment, and the Congressional 

Budget Office. 

TABLE 3. DISTRIBUTION OF EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION POSITIONS IN 

THE LEGISLATIVE BRANCH 

Title 

Senators and Representatives 

Delegates and Commissioners 

Congressional Staff b/ 

Legislative Agencies-

~ Most positions. 

Salary !:;./ 

$44,600 

$44,600 

$39,600 

$39,600 

Number 

535 

4 

565 

235 

1,339 

£/ Estimates from Senate and House disbursing and finance offices. 

£/ Estimate includes 23 executive level, 180 general schedule, and 

32 positions in other pay systems. 

6 
THE JUDICIAL BRANCH 

The judicial branch has 10 percent of the federal 

officials receiving executive compensation. Those 

receiving salaries at the supergrade equivalent and 

higher include 1,105 judges (of whom 200 are full-time 

bankruptcy judges and 167 are retired) and 35 senior 

staff employees. 

TABLE 4. DISTRIBUTION OF EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION POSITIONS IN 

THE JUDICIAL BRANCH ~/ 

Chief Justice 

Associate Justices 

Judges: 

Courts of Appeals 

U.S. District Courts 

Bankruptcy (full-time) 

U.S. Magistrates 

Other Courts ~ 

Subtotal 

Staff 

Salary 

$65,000 

63,000 

44,600 

42,000 

37,800 

37,800 

42,000-44,600 

39,600 c;:/ 

Number 

1 

8 

97 

398 

200 

150 

1,105 

1,140 

!y Data derived from information in the Report of the Commission 

on Executive, Legislative, and Judicial Salaries (December 1976) 

plus 26 judgeships which currently are vacant. 

~ Includes Court of Claims, Court of Customs and Patent Appeals, 

Customs Court, part-time bankruptcy judges, trial judges 

of the Court of Claims, and 167 retired judges. 

£/ Most positions. 

Q/ Reported by the Administrative Office of the United States Courts. 

7 
CHAPTER II EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION--THE CURRENT SYSTEM 

Two distinct groups of federal executives receive 

executive compensation: 

o Executives who come within the direct purview 

of the Commission on Executive, Legislative, 

and Judicial Salaries (Quadrennial Review); and 

o Executives who hold supergrade positions under 

the General Schedule or other authorities. 

Both the basis for and the recent history of setting 

pay for these two groups differ significantly. Salaries 

of employees under the quadrennial review system are not 

required to be comparable with private sector salaries. 

Supergrade salaries, on the other hand, are intended to 

follow the principle of comparability. Since 1969, 

there has been but one adjustment of the salaries under 

quadrennial review, but the supergrade salaries have 

been adjusted annually, at least on paper. This 

difference in recent history has produced a number of 

anomalies to be discussed later in this chapter. 

QUADRENNIAL REVIEW 

The level of compensation for the top echelon--

Executive Schedule, Members of Congress, and Judges--

is reviewed once every four years by a commission 

specifically appointed for the purpose. About 2,400 

positions--about 20 percent of those receiving 

executive compensation--come within the direct purview 

of the Commission on Executive, Legislative, and 

Judicial Salaries. In view of the unique nature of 

positions within its purview, it has wide latitude 

in developing recommendations to the President for 

"appropriate (emphasis added) pay levels and relationships" among respective offices and positions, 

8 
including the relationship of such pay to classification 

and pay rates in the General Schedule. 1/ 

After receiving the Commission's recommendations, 

the President must include his proposals for executive, 

legislative, and judicial pay in the next budget to be 

transmitted to the Congress. These proposals take 

effect after 30 days unless either House disapproves 

them, in whole or in part, or the Congress enacts 

alternative rates. 

The President's recommendations for the first 

quadrennial review were below the levels recommended 

by the Commission. (See Table 5.) Congress adopted 

the President's recommendations in 1969. 2/ 

TABLE 5. THE FIRST QUADRENNIAL REVIEW 

1969 

1968 Commission Proposed/ 

Actual Recommendation Enacted 

Level I $35,000 $60,000 $60,000 

Level II 30,000 50,000 42,500 

Level III 29,500 46,000 40,000 

Level IV 28,750 43,000 38,000 

Level V 28,000 40,000 36,000 

Members of Congress 30,000 50,000 42,500 

Associate Justices 39,500 65,000 60,000 

Appellate Judges 33,000 50,000 42,500 

District Judges 30,000 47,500 40,000 

1/ Public Law 90-206, (December 16, 1967). 

2/ Report of the Commission on Executive, Legislative, 

and JUdicial Salaries, ( December 1968), p. 11-14. 

9 
The subsequent history of the quadrennial review 

process can be briefly summarized: 

o In February 1974, the President slightly 

modified the total increases recommended 

by the second quadrennial commission but 

proposed that they be phased in over a 

three year period. Congress disapproved 

the President's recommendation, and thus 

the rates remained at the March 1969 level. 

o In 1975, the Congress enacted legislation 

to increase the rates of pay each year for 

all positions subject to the quadrennial 

review procedure by the same percentage 

as the average General Schedule (GS) pay 

comparability adjustment. 3/ The 1975 

adjustment of 5 percent thus became effective 

in October. 

o In September 1976, the Congress included 

language in the Legislative Branch Appropriation Act 4/ which bars payment of the 

October 1976 General Schedule pay comparability 

adjustment of 4.83 percent to officials 

covered by the quadrennial review process. 

o In December 1976, the third quadrennial 

commission submitted its recommendations 

to the President. 

~/ Public Law 94-82, (August 9, 1975). 

4/ Public Law 94-440, (October 1, 1976). 

10 
A comparison of selected salaries under these 

various actions follows: 

TABLE 6. SECOND AND THIRD QUADRENNIAL REVIEWS 

Level I 

Level II 

Level III 

Level IV 

Level V 

Members of Congress 

Associate Justices 

Appellate Judges 

District Judges 

Judges 

Second 

Quadrennial 

Review 

1974 

Proposed !i±1 

$70,000 

53,000 

50,000 

47,500 

45,000 

53,000 

70,000 

53,000 

50,000 

45,000 

Current 

Salaries 

1975 .£/ 

$63,000 

44,000 

42,000 

39,000 

37,800 

44,600 

63,000 

44,600 

42,000 

37,800 

Thtrd 

Quadrennial 

Review 

Recommendations 

1976 £1 

$67,000 

60,000 

57,000 

53,000 

49,000 

57,500 

77,500 

65,000 

62,000 

53,000 

!i±1 Report of the Commission on Executive, Legislative, and 

Judicial Salaries (June 1973), pp. 13-14. 

Q/ Salaries enacted in 1969 increased by 5 percent (rounded 

to nearest $100). 

£/ The Report of the Commission on Executive, Legislative, and 

Judicial Salaries (December 1976), Part II, Table 2. 

As can be seen from this brief summary, officials 

within the purview of the quadrennial commission have 

received only one pay adjustment since February 1969, 

a 5 percent increase in October 1975. That pay increase 

was coincident with the General Schedule pay comparability adjustment, and it was not a result of the 

quadrennial review process. On the contrary, since 1969, 

Congress has not approved any pay increases recommended 

by the quadrennial review commission. 

During this same seven year period, pay for most 

of the federal work force has been adjusted annually 

and has risen 65.4 percent. The Consumer Price Index 

has risen 53.3 percent. 

11 
GENERAL SCHEDULE SUPERGRADES 

Pay for nearly 80 percent of those receiving 

executive compensation is determined by procedures 

under the General Schedule--either directly through 

the General Schedule or indirectly through other pay 

schedules and positions linked to it. 

In principle, General Schedule pay is designed 

to be comparable with private enterprise rates and 

to maintain distinctions between rates based on 

dif rences in work and performance. For grades GS-l 

through GS-15 of the General Schedule, the rates are 

developed from an annual survey of similar jobs in 

the private sector--the National Survey of Professional, 

Administrative, Technical, and Clerical Pay (PATC). 

However, the pay rates at the supergrade level (grades 

GS-16, 17, and 18) are not based on a survey of similar 

jobs in the private sector; they are an extension of 

the salary differentials that exist at the GS-14 and 

15 levels. 

Pay Relationships 

In the past, the Executive Level V salary has 

served as a statutory "lid" on pay to General Schedule 

employees. That is, no General Schedule employee was 

to receive a salary higher than that set for Executive 

Level V. The October 1976 General Schedule adjustment 

modi ed this provision by permitting the Level V lid 

to be exceeded by 4.83 percent, the average increase 

for all General Schedule employees, bringing the new 

General Schedule maximum to $39,600. Both the original 

policy and the modification have produced anomalies 

in the overall pay structure. 

Because of the Executive Level V lid, the actual 

salaries of supergrades under the General Schedule and 

related authorities have been frozen below those 

generated by the schedule. Wh supergrade pay has 

been adjusted on paper, actual salaries for supergrades 

have been restricted, currently to $39,600. As of 

October 1976, these unrealized rates, referred to as 

"asterisk" or "paper!' rates, are: 

12 
TABLE 7. RATE RANGE 

Steps: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 

Grade 16 39,629* 40,950* 42,271* 43,592* 44,913* 46,234* 47,555* 48,876* 50,197* 

Grade 17 46,423* 47,970* 49,517* 51,064* 52,611* 

Grade 18 54,410* 

* Salaries limited to $39,600. 

A substantial difference has developed between the 

existing pay of supergrades and the General Schedule 

rates that would be in effect if there were no linkage 

to the Executive Schedule or other limitations. The 

unrealized pay ranges from an average of $5,300 for 

GS-16's to $14,800 for those at the GS 8 level. 

TABLE 8. DIFFERENCES BETWEEN RATES ON THE GENERAL SCHEDULE 

AND ACTUAL SUPERGRADE SALARIES 

GS-16 

General Schedule 

Average Salary ~I 44,900 

Existing Pay 39 600 

Difference 5,300 

GS-17 

50,500 

39,600 

10,900 

GS-18 

54,400 

14,800 

Weighted 

Average QI 

46,800 

7,200 

~I Average salary (rounded to nearest $100) derived by number 

of employees at each step in each ive grade. 

QI Weighted average reflects the distribution of employees 

among grades 16, 17, and 18. 

13 
These differences between General Schedule rates and 

actual salaries underscore the point that, in practice, 

the Executive Schedule effectively determines the rates 

of pay for executives under the General Schedule and 

related authorities. 

A further anomaly has resulted from the 1976 

General Schedule comparability adjustment. Because 

the average increase under this adjustment was not 

given to most employees within the purview of the 

quadrennial commission, more than 270 officials at 

Executive Level V or equivalent still receive a salary 

of $37,800, while nearly 8,700 lower-ranked supergrade 

executives now receive $39,600. 

Salary Compression 

As pay under the General Schedule and related 

authorities has increased each year, the number of 

executives and other employees at the flasterisk" or 

"paperfl rates has increased until it now exceeds over 

20,000. This figure includes about 8,700 executives 

at the supergrade level and 12,100 other employees in 

GS grade 15 (step 7 or above) or equivalent. All of 

these employees receive the same salary of $39,600 

despite differences in levels of work and responsibility. This phenomenon is often referred to as 

!!salary compression." 

TOTAL COMPENSATION 

A discussion of executive compensation should 

address benefits as well as pay. The recent President's 

Panel on Federal Compensation recommended that the 

principle of General Schedule pay comparability with 

the private sector should include consideration of 

benefits as well as pay. 51 The report of the third 

quadrennial commission also recommended certain changes 

~I Report to the President of the President's Panel 

on Federal Compensation, (December 1975), p. 7. 

14 
in the benefits for top level officials; e.g., 

retirement, reimbursement for relocation costs, 

and allowance for maintaining two residences. 

In the federal government, the nature of 

"fringe" benefits for executives is essentially the 

same as that provided all employees--retirement, 

vacations, sick leave, and contributions toward 

group health and life insurance. Top officials 

receive other IIperquisites" of office (e.g., the 

use of automobiles for official business), just as 

the top officials of corporations receive additional 

forms of compensation beyond the standard benefits 

package. 

Retirement 

Members of the executive compensation group are 

included under the Civil Service Retirement System 

with the following major exclusions: The President, 

Judges of the United States appointed for life, and 

certain executives subject to another Government 

retirement system. 

The principal features of the retirement system 

include: 

o Employee contribution of 7 percent of salary 

supplemented by agency contributions and 

appropriations. 

o Compulsory retirement at age 70 with 15 years 

service. 

o Retirement with full annuity at age 55, with 

at least 30 years of service; at age 60 with 

at least 20 years of service; or at age 62 

with at least 5 years of service. 

o Total disability benefits payable after 

5 years of service. 

o Entitlement to immediate but not full annuity 

benefits after involuntary separation without 

cause after minimum of 25 years of service at 

any age, or 20 years if age 50 or over. 

15 
o Survivor annuity benefits to widows or widowers 

and dependent children of employees. 

o Crediting of military service and unused sick 

leave. 

o Automatic cost-of-living increases twice a year. 

o Maximum annuity not to exceed 80 percent of 

salary (after 41 to 42 years of service). 

Employees serving fewer than five years receive 

no vested interest in federal retirement. However, 

deductions of 7 percent are withheld from pay and 

refunded without interest if there is less than one 

year served and with 3 percent interest after one to 

five years service. These vesting and refund provisions 

apply to all employees, but they are of special concern 

to many noncareer executives who serve short-term 

appointments. 

Members of Congress and employees of the Congress 

who elect to belong to the Civil Service Retirement 

Systems contribute at higher rates and receive annuities 

based on somewhat different formulas. 

Vacation and Sick Leave (Civil Service) 

Vacation (annual) leave is earned at the rate of 

26 days per year for employees with 15 years or more 

service, 20 days for employees with more than 3 but 

fewer than 15 years of service, and 13 days for employees 

with fewer than 3 years of service. Up to 30 days of 

annual leave may be accumulated and carried over from 

one year to the next. 

Sick leave is earned at the rate of 13 days per 

year by all full-time employees and may be accumulated 

without limitation. 

Health Insurance 

Almost all employees may participate in the Federal 

Employees Health Benefits Program, providing a choice 

16 
of over 50 different plans. The program is a voluntary 

one and is financed by employee and government contributions. The government pays 60 percent of the average 

"high option" premium of six large and representative 

plans, not to exceed 75 percent of any individual's 

total premium. Coverage may continue after retirement 

after a minimum of 12 years of service or for disability. 

Life Insurance 

A group life insurance program providing term 

insurance is available to almost all employees. The 

cost of the insurance is shared--one-third by the 

government and two-thirds by the employee. The amount 

of insurance available equals the employee's annual 

pay rounded to the next higher thousand plus $2,000, 

with a minimum of $10,000 and a maximum of $49,000. 

Thus, a supergrade with an annual salary of $39,600 

would be covered by $42,000 in term life insurance. 

Relocation Costs 

Except for certain "crit ical skill " workers, 

employees receive no reimbursement for relocation 

costs associated with their first appointment to 

federal service. 

17 
CHAPTER III EXECUTIVE PAY AND BENEFITS IN THE NONFEDERAL SECTOR 

Recent studies indicate that the compensation of 

federal executives needs to be increased if the government is to be competitive with non-federal employers. II 

If competitiveness is desired, one should consider thedifferent modes of compensation in the private sector 

to arrive at a balanced view of federal executive 

compensation. Top level compensation in the private 

sector consists primarily of (1) cash payments (in the 

form of basic salary and bonuses), and (2) supplemental 

compensation or "fringe" benefits. 

BASIC SALARY AND BONUSES 

Compensation surveys conducted by federal and 

private organizations provide some indication of the 

status of compensation for federal executives relative 

to comparable levels of responsibility in the private 

sector. These include a 1974 staff study by the Civil 

Service Commission and the Dartnell Corporation survey 

of executive compensation for 1975. 21 Other bases 

for comparison include executive pay-in the non-federal 

public sector and the recommendations of the President's 

Panel on Federal Compensation. 

!I Comptroller General of the United States, Critical 

Need for a Better System for Adjusting Top Executive, 

Legislative, and Judicial Salaries, FPCD-75-l40; 

Staff Report of the President's Panel on Federal 

compensatlon (January 19'16); and the Report of the 

Commission on Executive, Legislative, and Judicial 

Salaries (December 1976). 

~I Dartnell's 11th Executive Compensation Survey (1976), 

a survey for calendar year 1975 of over 350 companies 

representing compensation data on over 4,100 

executives. 

18 
Civil Service Commission Study 

The Civil Service Commission conducted a staff 

study in April 1974 to assess the comparability of 

General Schedule rates at grades 14 through 18 with 

those in the private sector at equivalent levels of 

work. The study obtained salary and bonus data for 

eight occupations from 128 companies (covering more 

than 700 employees in GS 16-18 equivalent level 

positions). Analysis of CSC data indicates that the 

average General Schedule rates for supergrades would 

need to have been 30 percent higher to achieve pay 

comparability with the jobs surveyed, and 40 percent 

higher if bonuses were included. 

TABLE 9. COMPARISON OF ~rnAN SALARIES--1974 

CSC Study of Increase Over 

128 Companies GS-Rates 

General 

Schedule Salary & Salary & 

Rates Salary Bonuses Salary Bonuses 

GS-16 $35,500 $45,200 $48,000 $9,700 $12,500 

27% 35% 

GS-17 43,600 ~/ 56,400 62,300 12,800 18,700 

29% 43% 

GS-18 46,300 ~/ 71,100 77,800 24 800 31,500 

68% 

Actual 1974 rates were limited to $36,000. Source: U.S. 

Civil Service Commission Staff Report, Study of Private 

Enter rise Pa Rates for Positions Equivalent to GS-14 18, 

June 1974. Amounts rounded to nearest 100 and based on 

calculations from data in CSC study. See Appendix for 

comparison of eight occupations. 

19 
The difference between the General Schedule rates 

and the salary levels in the CSC study was attributed 

both (a) to differences in the job matches in the survey, 

and (b) to a constant or increasing percentage increase 

between salaries for upper-level jobs in private 

industry, compared to a declining percentage increase 

between supergrade rates in the General Schedule. 

Dartnell's Survey 

Dartnell's Executive Compensation Survey fo;r 1975 

offers another way of looking at federal pay for top 

officials. The amount of compensation v@.r;ies by size, 

reflected in annual sales volume, and by profit levels, 

which impact signi cantly on the size of bonuses paid. 

(Bonuses received by executives in 1975 were sharply 

below levels in previous years due to lower profits 

during the period.) Annual compensation fqr top 

corporate officials ranged from $134-$216 thousand 

for firms with annual sales exceeding $250 million, 

and $66-$98 thousand for firms with $50-$100 million 

in annual sales. While any direct comparison between 

executive positions in the federal government and 

private industry is admittedly tenuous, there are some 

senior positions that are common to both and draw upon 

the same general pool of professional talent. Some of 

these corporate pOSitions and the 1975 Dartnell 

compensation data for them are compared in the following 

table with similar federal positions. 

20 
TABLE 10. COMPENSATION (HIGH AND MEDIUM SIZE CORPORATIONS) 

FOR SELECTED EXECUTIVE POSITIONS 

Legal Vice President 

Annual Sales 

Over $250 Million 

$ 89,000 

s 

Annual Sales 

$50-$100 Million 

$45,000 

(In comparison, the General Counsel of the Department of 

Health, Education, and Welfare receives $39,900; the Chief 

Counsel of the Internal Revenue Service receives $37,800.) 

Financial Vice President 

Treasurer 

Controller 

$104,000 

65,000 

65,000 

$50,000 

37,000 

34,000 

(In comparison, the Comptroller of the Defense Department 

receives $39,900; the Fiscal Assistant Secretary of the 

Treasury receives $37,800.) 

Administrative' Vice President $ 93,000 $45,000 

(In comparison, the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for 

Administration receives $39,900; the Assistant Secretary 

of Agriculture for Administration receives $37 / 800.) 

Industrial Relations Vice President $ 69,000 

Personnel Director $ 42,000 

$36,000 

$22,000 

(In comparison, 'the Chairman of the Civil Service Commission 

receives $42,000; personnel directors of major agencies 

receive $39,600.) 

Engineering Vice President 

Research Vice President 

$ 59,000 

$ 50,000 

$47,000 

$45,000 

(In comparison, the Director of Defense Research and 

Engineering receives $42,000; the Assistant Administrator 

for Research and Development of the Environmental 

Protection Agency receives $39,900.) 

21 
State/Local Executive Pay 

Executive pay in the non-federal public sector 

provides another basis for assessing federal executive 

compensation. Some recent examples of salaries of 

public officials at the state and local government 

levels include: 

o The average salary of the Governors of the 10 

most populous states in late 1973 was $51,210. 

o The average salary of the city or county 

managers (1974) in jurisdictions of over one 

million population was $49,640. 

o The median salary of chief executive officers 

of public universities (1975-76) with enrollments 

of 20 thousand or more was $49,500. 

President's Panel on Federal Compensation 

The President's Panel on Federal Compensation 

recommended that the General Schedule be subdivided into 

a "Clerical/Technical Service" and a "Professional/ 

Administrative/Managerial Service." One objective of 

such a separation would be to achieve a greater degree 

of comparability by closer external alignment with 

similar occupations in private enterprise. In other 

words, a Professional/Administrative schedule would 

provide a more comparab set of executive compensation 

levels by deleting clerical and para-professional 

occupations from the comparison. 

The estimated ef ct of such separation offers 

another basis to examine the comparability of General 

Schedule rates with those in the private sector. At 

the supergrade level the average "paper" rates would 

increase by 6.9 percent for a GS-16 and 16 percent for 

a GS-IB. 1/ 

~/ This estimate assumes that all other factors remain 

unchanged. The Civil Service Commission staff 

believes other changes would occur and that the 

impact of subdividing the General Schedule cannot 

reasonably be projected at this time. However, they 

agree that increases in supergrade rates would be 

probable. 

22 
TABLE 11. ESTIMATED EFFECT OF SPLITTING THE GENERAL SCHEDULE 

GS-16 

GS-17 

GS-18 

Average Current 

GS-Comparabili ty 

Rates--1976 

$44,900 

50,500 

54,400 

Average GS-Comparability 

Rates Under a Separate 

Professional Administrative Schedule 

$48,000 

56,700 

63,100 

SUPPLEMENTAL COMPENSATION if 

Increase Under 

Separate Schedule 

$3,100 

6,200 

8,700 

6.9% 

12.3% 

16.0% 

The most common types of supplemental compensation 

(other than bonuses) paid by private corporations to 

their senior officials include retirement and deferred 

compensation, health and life insurance, stock distributions and profit sharing. A formalized savings or 

thrift plan is offered by some companies. 

Retirement and Disability Benefits 

Formal pension plans are established in 54 percent 

of the firms with the company underwriting approximately 

78 percent of the cost. No data were available in the 

Dartnell Survey on the level of benefits received. 

Temporary and long-term disability benefits are provided 

by 72 percent and 77 percent of the companies respectively. 

if Data on supplemental compensation in the private 

sector is from Dartnell's, op. cit., unless otherwise 

noted. -- ---

23 
Heal th and Life Insurance 

Ninety percent or more of the premium costs were 

paid by nearly 60 percent of the companies for health 

insurance and by 72 percent for life insurance. 

Stock Distribution and Profit Sharing 

More than 80 percent of the companies reported 

that top management employees obtained stock purchase 

privileges, were granted stock bonuses, or received 

both. Like cash bonuses, profit sharing is closely 

tied to corporate profits, and in 1975 it was provided 

by 41 percent of the companies. 

Savings and Thrift Plans 

A formalized savings plan is provided by 13 percent 

of the companies, generally those with annual sales in 

excess of $100 million. Of these companies with savings 

plans, two-thirds reported that the employer matching 

contribution exceeded 90 percent. 

Relocation Expenses 

Nearly half of the companies provided some reimbursement for moving and relocation costs for top and 

middle management. Another survey of 320 companies 

indicates that more than 75 percent provide new hires 

with reimbursement of costs associated with househunting trips, shipment of household goods, travel to 

new location, and temporary living quarters. 51 

~I Commission on Executive, Legislative, and Judicial 

Salaries, op. cit., p. 11. 

24 
CHAPTER IV POLICY OPTIONS ON EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION 

IMPLICATIONS OF THE CURRENT EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION 

SITUATION 

Before considering the various actions the Congress 

can take affecting executive compensation, it is 

important to examine what will happen if there is no 

action to increase the compensation of top federal 

officials. 

A 1975 report of the General Accounting Office, 

a 1976 staff report of the President's Panel on Federal 

Compensation, and the recently released report of the 

third quadrennial Commission on Executive, Legislative, 

and Judicial Salaries cite numerous cases in the 

executive departments and the judiciary where the 

current salary levels have: 

o made it difficult to 11 top level positions 

from outside the government, particularly in 

scientific, medical, legal, and education 

fields; and 

o resulted in loss of senior personnel through 

resignation and early retirement. !/ 

While it is relatively easy to identify individual 

cases attributable to inadequate compensation, it is 

difficult to assess the overall extent and impact of 

these cases. Quantifiable data, particularly regarding 

supergrades, is very limited. 

!/ Comptroller General, op. cit., p. 18-22; President's 

Panel, op.cit., p. 63-65;and The Report of the 

CommissIOn, op. cit., p. 2-4. 

25 
Recruitment 

The third quadrennial Commission concluded that 

most top level executives and judges "are prepared to 

accept some diminution in income to come into the 

Government" since salary is not considered a primary 

factor in reaching their decision. Other factors 

such as prestige, challenge of public service, and 

potential career enhancement upon leaving government 

service appear dominant. This is not to say that 

salaries do not have some influence on decisions to 

accept or reject an offer of a federal position--

particularly for the candidate with a high salary 

in his current job. ~/ 

For officials at the supergrade level, the 

executive branch relies primarily (80 percent) on 

internal advancement and career development rather 

than recruitment from outside the government. There 

has been a sharp reduction since 1970 in the already 

small proportion of supergrade vacancies filled from 

the outside--declining from 16.8 percent in 1970 to 

10.2 percent in 1975. 3/ There are many factors that 

may have contributed to th trend, and the extent to 

which compensation was a factor cannot be determined. 

Retention 

For top level executives, the third quadrennial 

Commission's report indicates that an increase in 

compensation should be large enough "to retain these 

people for a reasonab time." A consultant to the 

~/ Respondents to a survey of 528 incumbents and 

departees from senior positions in the federal 

government accepted an average reduction in salary 

of 23 percent for joining the executive branch, 33 

percent for the judicial, and 2 percent for the 

legislative. The Report of the Commission, op. cit., 

Background Studies, p. 2. 

~/ Data from U.S. Civil Service Commission, Bureau of 

Executive Manpower. 

26 
Commission concluded that in the executive and judicial 

branches, "the decis ion to depart federal service was 

associated with a process of economic erosion." Data 

on individuals leaving the government indicated that 

those leaving the executive and judicial branches 

averaged a salary gain of more than 84 percent, and 

those leaving the legislative branch realized a 34 

percent increase. il 

For supergrade employees, retention patterns 

present a mixed picture. 

The overall eXEerience level of the supergrade 

work force has not declined. Since 1969, the average 

age and years of service for supergrades has remained 

at 52 and 23 years respectively. The proportion of 

supergrades age 55 and over has remained at 40 percent 

since 1969, while those with 30 or more years of service 

has actually increased from 22 percent in 1969 to 30 

percent today. 

The resignation rate of supergrades has increased 

about 20 percent between 1971 (1.9 percent) and 1975 

(2.3 percent) although the rate has fallen since the 

peak year in 1973 (3.3 percent). The resignation rate 

for career executives with full tenure has increased by 

two-thirds (.6 percent in 1971 to 1.0 percent in 1975). 

Many factors have undoubtedly contributed to these 

trends, including salary. 

Early retirement (age 55 to 59 with 30 years of 

service) of supergrade employees earning the legal 

maximum occurs at a higher rate than for all employees. ~I 

41 The Report of the Commission, QE. cit., Recommendations, p. 2-3; and Background Studies, p. 2-8. 

51 The quadrennial Commission's report notes that only 

19.5 percent of all eligible employees retired during 

the year beginning in November 1974, compared to 46.6 

percent for supergrades earning $36,000, the legal 

maximum at the time. Interpretation of this data 

should be tempered by two observations. First, even 

in the 1974-75 peak years, more than 50 percent of 

all supergrades eligible to retire early chose to 

continue working; and second, the average and 

years of service of new super grade retirees have 

remained fairly stable since 1969. 

27 
POSSIBLE COURSES OF CONGRESSIONAL ACTION 

There are numerous possibilities for Congress 

to consider in reviewing the President's recommendations for increasing executive, legislative, and 

judicial salaries. Three alternative courses are 

discussed--others are possible, including no increase 

at all: 

Option 1: Follow past Congressional practice by 

linking salary increases to the average 

annual General Schedule adjustment; 

Option 2: Adopt the recommendations of the third 

quadrennial Commission on Executive, 

Legislative, and Judicial Salaries (or 

similar proposals); or 

Option 3: Adopt the recommendations of the 

President's Panel on Federal Compensation by allowing the "supergrade" 

salaries to increase to the rates 

specified in the General Schedule. 

Past Congressional Practice 

If the salary recommendations to be included in 

the President's budget are disapproved by the Congress 

~nd no further legislative action is taken, the salaries 

of 0 cials within the purview of the third quadrennial 

review are estimated to increase by at ast 10.57 

percent in October 1976 due to the 1975 and 1976 GScomparability adjustments. Salaries of supergrade 

employees would increase by at least 5.48 percent. 6 

£/ Assumes President's recommendations would be disapproved and no further leg lation enacted either to 

provide alternative increases or to extend the fiscal 

year 1977 ban on payment of the GS-comparability 

increase. Estimated increase of 10.57 percent 

includes 4.83 percent for October 1976 compounded 

by estimated 5.48 percent for October 1977. 

28 
This course of action would provide a relatively minor 

adjustment and would have little effect in resolving 

the salary compression of the 8,200 supergrade 

executives who do not receive the full General Schedule 

rates. 

Commission on Executive, Legislative, and Judicial 

Salaries 

For officials directly under its purview, the 

third quadrennial Commission recommended salary 

increases averaging 32.2 percent. Pay for supergrade 

executives would increase by an average of 16.7 

percent. Salary compression would be eliminated for 

those in grade GS-15 or equivalent. For those in the 

supergrades, the compression would be reduced by 70 

percent (8,100 employees to 2,500). Other key 

components of the Commission's recommendations include: 

o Supplemental compensation would be increased 

by: (a) permitting officials at Executive 

Levels I-V to defer contributions to the 

pension fund until the fifth anniversary 

following their appointment; (b) providing 

reimbursement of relocation costs for newly 

elected Members of Congress and newly appOinted 

executives; and (c) paying an annual allowance 

of up to $5,000 for members of Congress who 

maintain a residence in both their home 

district and Washington, D.C. 

o Pay relationships among 0 icials under the 

purview of the Commission would be altered by 

providing relatively greater increases for the 

judiciary and for executives at the lower 

levels of the executive schedule than for 

Cabinet officers, 

o A code of public conduct would be established 

for top officials in all three branches of 

government including: 

disclosure of financial affairs 

conflict of interest provisions on 

investments ~ 

29 
restrictions on outside earned income 

appropriate and accountable expense 

allowances 

restrictions on post-service employment. 

Presidentts Panel on Federal Compensation 

The Panel on Federal Compensation, which reported 

to the President in December 1975, recommended that: 

(a) the salaries of executives in the supergrades be 

increased to the full amount specified in the General 

Schedule, and (b) the salaries of other top officials 

within the purview of the third quadrennial Commission 

be increased accordingly. Under this approach, 

officials coming under the quadrennial review would 

receive estimated salary increases averaging 30.6 

percent; increases for supergrade executives would 

average 56.2 percent. Salary compression would be 

eliminated. 

COST COMPARISONS 

The difference in the total annual cost of the 

three alternative courses for increas}ng executive, 

legislative, and judicial salaries ranges from $61 

million per year for following past Congressional 

practice to $150 million for adopting the recommendations of the Presidentts Panel on Federal Compensation. 

Table 12 displays the costs of the major options. 

30 
TABLE 12. COMPONENTS OF ANNUAL COST INCREASE, DOLLARS IN MILLIONS 

Direct 

Salary Benefits ~/ Total 

Option 1: Past 

Congressional Action 

Quadrennial Review Executives $10.4 .9 11.3 

Supergrades 19.4 1.7 21.1 

Subtotal 29.8 2.6 32.4 

GS-15 and Equivalent E./ 26.2 2.3 28.5 

Total 56.0 4.9 60.9 

Option 2: Commission on 

Executive, Legislative, 

and Judicial Salaries 

Quadrennial Review Executives 31. 7 7.6 ~/ 39.3 

Supergrades 58.9 5.1 64.0 

Subtotal 90.6 12.7 103.3 

GS-15 and Equivalent E./ 24.8 2.2 27.0 

Total 115.4 14.9 130.3 

Option 3: President's 

Panel on Federal 

Compensation 

Quadrennial Review Executives 49.5 4.3 53.8 

Supergrades 64.2 5.6 69.8 

Subtotal 113.7 9.9 123.6 

GS-15 and Equivalent E./ 24.8 2.1 27.0 

Total 138.5 12.0 150.5 

~/ Retirement and other benefits affected by pay adjustments are 

based on fiscal year 1976 estimate (for all employees) of 8.7 

percent. Estimates exclude amortization cost for increased 

liability of retirement funds. 

E./ Cost for employees in grade GS-l5 (step 7 and above) where 

salaries are affected by linkage to the Executive Schedule. 

~/ Includes $4.8 million for proposal to pay relocation costs 

and provide allowance for dual residences. 

31 
If the costs for GS-15 and equivalents are 

excluded. the incremental annual cost for executive 

salary increases (quadrennial review officials and 

supergrades) ranges from $30 million to $114 million. 

The average cost increases range from 6.6 percent for 

extending the General Schedule pay adjustment (option 

1) to 25.2 percent for allowing the supergrade salaries 

to increase to the rates specified in the General 

Schedule (option 3). Under any of the three options, 

the executive branch officials account for at least 

two-thirds of the total cost increases. 

TABLE 13. ANNUAL IMPACT OF ALTERNATIVE COURSES TO INCREASE 

EXECUTIVE SALARIES, DOLLARS IN MILLIONS 

Payroll Base 

Option 1: Past 

Congressional 

Practice 

Option 2: 

Commission on 

Executive, 

Legislative, 

and Judicial 

Salaries 

Option 3: 

President's 

Panel on 

Federal 

Compensation 

Executive 

Branch. 

$348.5 

20.9 

(6.0%) 

62.1 

(17.8%) 

75.0 

(21. 5%) 

Legislative 

Branch 

$56.3 

4.4 

(7.6%) 

12.3 

(21. 8%) 

17.7 

(31.4%) 

32 

Judicial 

Branch 

$46.8 

4.6 

(9.8%) 

16.2 

(34.6%) 

21. 0 

(44.9%) 

Total 

$451. 6 

29.8 

(6.6%) 

90.6 

(20.1%) 

113.7 

(25.2%) 
.c 

.'" 

~ 

~ is: 

'" Z 

>-3 

'" 

~ >-3 

Z 

" o 

." 

~ 

'" 

<0 

~ 

~ 

o 

<X> 

~ 

c..u 

c..u 

GS-16 

Personnel Director 

Attorney 

Chief Accountant 

Engineer 

EDP Program Manager 

Plant Manager 

Commercial Manager 

Economist 

GS-17 

Personnel Director 

Attorney 

Chief Accountant 

Engineer 

EDP Program Manager 

Plant Manager 

Economist 

GS-18 

Personnel Director 

Attorney 

Chief Accountant 

Engineer 

EDP Program Manager 

Plant Manager 

Economist 

Average Supergrade 

APPENDIX 

1974 Compensation Comparison for Supergrades 

(Mean Salaries: Rounded to nearest $100) 

Comparability Rate 

Extrapolated From 

General Schedule 

$35,500 

$43,600 

$46,300 

$38,000 

esc Study of 

Non-Federal Jobs 

Salary Alone 

$45,200 

47,300 

43,600 

38,600 

46,700 

37,800 

48,200 

40,000 

43,000 

$56,400 

60,200 

57,800 

55,900 

58,500 

48,800 

49,600 

51,500 

$71,100 

93,700 

68,400 

57,500 

70,500 

51,000 

77,000 

89,000 

$49,500 

J.ncluding Bonus 

$48,000 

55,600. 

47,400 

43,800 

48,100 

40,200 

49,500 

43,200 

51,900 

$62,300 

76,800 

64,600 

65,900 

60,700 

54,600 

52,000 

63,300 

$77,800 

93,700 

78,700 

65,800 

74,300 

62,000 

77,000 

154,000 

$53,300 

Increase Over 

Extrapolated Rate 

Salary Alone Including Bonus 

$ 9,700 

11,800 

8,100 

3,100 

11,200 

2,300 

12,700 

4,500 

7,500 

$12,800 

16,600 

14,200 

12,300 

14,900 

5,200 

6,000 

7,900 

%27.3 

33.2 

22.8 

8.7 

31. 5 

6.5 

35.8 

12.7 

21.1 

%29.4 

38.1 

32.6 

28.2 

34.2 

11. 9 

l3.8 

18.1 

$24,800 %53.6 

47,400 102.4 

22,100 47.7 

11,200 24.2 

24,200 52.3 

4,700 10.2 

30,700 66.3 

42,700 92.2 

$11,500 %30.3 

$12,500 %35.2 

20,100 56.6 

11 ,900 33.5 

8,300 

12,600 

4,700 

14,000 

7,700 

16,400 

23.4 

35.5 

13.2 

39.4 

21. 7 

46.2 

$18,700 %42.9 

33,20076.1 

21,000 

22,300 

17,100 

11,000 

8,400 

19,700 

$31,500 

47,400 

32,400 

19,500 

28,000 

15,700 

30,700 

107,700 

48.2 

51.1 

39.2 

25.2 

19.3 

45.2 

%68.0 

102.4 

70.0 

42.1 

60.5 

33.9 

66.3 

232.6 

$15,300 %40.3 

Compiled by the Congressional Budget Office from data in u.S. Civil Service Commission, Staff Report: Study of 

Private Enterprise Pay Rates for Positions Equivalent to GS-14/18, June 1974, attachment 9, page 2.