Federal vs. Private Employment

The Cato Institute had an interesting analysis on their web site. They aggregated the compensation of all Federal employees, and compared that to the aggregated compensation for all private sector employees.

The first figures presented were for average cash compensation:
Federal Employees: $81,258
Private Sector Employees: $50,462

Federal employees average much higher wage and salary than the private sector. However, the difference does not become eyepopping until you include the public versus private benefits packages:
Federal Employees: $123,049
Private Sector Employees: $61,051

Well, the Feds get better pay, and they get much better benefits. But they have to put up with higher risk of getting fired or laid off, right? Oh, wait, no, it’s the other way around. The annual risk of getting laid off or fired:
Federal Employees: 7.7%
Private Sector Employees: 24.1%

Not only is the private sector (i.e. the taxpayers) footing the bill for this disparity, but the gap in all of these measures has increased over the last ten years.

You can’t call them civil servants. Better to call them civil masters.