Contractor salary

[weaverra]

Booz Allen Terminates Employment of NSA Leaker Edward Snowden, Releases Salary Information - WSJ.com

Per this article his salary was more like $122,000.

[HSVTransplant]

Originally Posted by ReggaeBusRider

This is probably the single most harmful paradigm in the government and Huntsville may be the worst offender outside of Washington D.C. I worked in a senior consultant position for 6 years supporting the Army. I made an above average salary and the company I worked for made almost 7 digits off my position in SIX YEARS. It is truly out of control. If the government needs a consultant for 4, 6, or 10 consecutive years at $240/hr and 40 hours/week, shouldn't they just hire someone and pay their salary at $80 fully burdened (base plus benefits)? I worked a firm-fixed price contract so it does not fit the model you describe.

There are two basic contract types: firm-fixed price and cost-plus. The cost plus fits the model you describe. With fixed price however, the government can grossly overpay for contract labor as they did in my case. The gov could have offered me a position, given me a raise, and saved close to $700,000 in six years on ONE position. This is all perfectly legal and within the federal acquisition guidelines. It is an absolute shame!!

The real issue is that, if people are truly honest about it, the military-industrial complex has become a form of white-collar welfare, ripe with inefficiency and bloat. I'm a part of it- not proud, but the economics are such that nothing significant will ever be done about it. There may be some nibbling around the edges to create the illusion of reform, but it would create a political firestorm should someone really try and reduce DoD personnel (whether civilian or contractor). And the members of the retired colonels club - many of whom have become accustomed to follow-on GS-15 employment - would be very upset at any attempt to reintroduce the federal earning cap for retired military (sarcasm intended). In any event, nothing the government does is efficient or timely - not a criticism of the individuals, just a reality of big bureaucracies.

[ReggaeBusRider]

Originally Posted by HSVTransplant

The real issue is that, if people are truly honest about it, the military-industrial complex has become a form of white-collar welfare, ripe with inefficiency and bloat. I'm a part of it- not proud, but the economics are such that nothing significant will ever be done about it. There may be some nibbling around the edges to create the illusion of reform, but it would create a political firestorm should someone really try and reduce DoD personnel (whether civilian or contractor). And the members of the retired colonels club - many of whom have become accustomed to follow-on GS-15 employment - would be very upset at any attempt to reintroduce the federal earning cap for retired military (sarcasm intended). In any event, nothing the government does is efficient or timely - not a criticism of the individuals, just a reality of big bureaucracies.

Very well said. I served in the military and want to thank you for your service whether it is civil servant, contractor, or military. There are many good civil servants yet many that abuse the white-collar welfare you mention. Many of them do not care about their level of performance... only their milking of the system by leaving the GS rolls and joining the contractor rolls in the same capacity to draw retirement and double dip. The system is badly broken and the average taxpayer has no idea how bad it is... or the disaster we are headed toward.