Government information technology workers have been approved by the Office of Personnel Management for an across-the-board pay increase even though they already receive special rates, according to a memo sent from OPM Director Kay Coles James to chief human capital officers.
“Over the last few months, the Chief Human Capital Officers Council has held several discussions regarding special rate adjustments for information technology (IT) employees. We considered various options regarding how IT special rates might be adjusted in January 2005 and made plans to attempt to collect the data necessary for me to make a decision among those options. However, based on our latest discussions and input from those who have begun collecting data, I have reached the conclusion that the only viable option for calendar year 2005 is to increase IT special rates by the same percentage as the General Schedule (GS) across-the-board increase. Therefore, I have decided to approve IT special rate adjustments equal to the across-the-board GS percentage increase for January 2005, which is yet to be determined,” James wrote.
The director also urged the federal human resources community to “take a more strategic view and approach to compensation matters,” and that OPM would continue to collect information related to the recruitment, retention and pay of IT employees.
“Office of Personnel Management staff will proceed to work with your staffs to collect the necessary information and be prepared to present a report on its findings to the Chief Human Capital Officers Council by Sept. 30 of next year,” James wrote.
