I find the comments regarding President Bush’s reduction of government employee’s annual pay raises outlandish (Dec. 4, “Workers’ weak raise another lump of coal”). Although on the surface it may appear that government workers are “getting the shaft” by having their annual raises lowered from 18.6% to 3.1%, their raises are actually being realigned with national trends in the United States.

Average annual raises in the United States are currently approximately 3-5%, which is significantly lower than annual raises have been historically. The poor economy and relatively low inflation have caused the decline of pay raises in the United States. Therefore, the raise government employees will be receiving this year will more closely correlate to the raises being given by corporations and businesses in the United States.

As an employee of a publicly traded corporation, I will be receiving a 3 to 5 percent this year based on my performance. I find it ludicrous that a government employee would be receiving a raise three times this amount. Government employees generally have fairly lucrative benefit packages as well.

If you crunch the numbers, the salary of a United States senator in 2002 was $150,000. A $5000 raise for a U.S. senator would equate to an annual raise increase of 3.33%, which is uncannily similar to the wage increases being given to government employees this year.

Daniel Bumblaukas

Senior

Industrial Engineering and Economics