Wages: More Similar Than Different
In measuring the differences between wages and salaries paid in the public and private sectors, one must be careful to compare "apples-to-apples." Doing so shows that in most cases, the wage differential between the two sectors is inconsequential. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the Federal agency responsible for compiling data on employee compensation, cautions against making broad comparisons between the public and private sectors. Rather, specific job classifications should be compared, and with detailed BLS data, it is possible to simply compare similar job titles. As illustrated in the charts below, compensation costs are generally equivalent when positions which are common to government and private industry are compared by actual job titles.4
The 1993 National Summary of Average Pay by Type illustrates additional similarities between pay rates in the private and public sectors.5
| |
PRIVATE SECTOR |
PUBLIC SECTOR |
| Accountant-Level I |
$ 497/week |
$ 491/week |
| Accountant-Level II |
$ 594 |
$ 560 |
| Attorney-Level I |
$ 807 |
$ 677 |
| Attorney-Level II |
$1,007 |
$ 979 |
| Engineer-Level I |
$ 659 |
$ 612 |
| Engineer-Level II |
$ 750 |
$ 734 |
| Budget Analyst-Level II |
$ 607 |
$ 602 |
| Budget Analyst-Level III |
$ 792 |
$ 782 |
| Buyer/Contract Spec-Lev I |
$ 497 |
$ 468 |
| Buyer/Contract Spec-Lev II |
$ 628 |
$ 593 |
| Computer Program-Level I |
$ 531 |
$ 461 |
| Computer Program-Level II |
$ 615 |
$ 559 |
| Drafter-Level I |
$ 386 |
$ 343 |
| Drafter-Level II |
$ 470 |
$ 481 |
| Engineering Tech-Level II |
$ 486 |
$ 475 |
| Engineering Tech-Level III |
$ 596 |
$ 558 |
| Accounting Clerk-Level I |
$ 291 |
$ 288 |
| Accounting Clerk-Level II |
$ 350 |
$ 363 |
| General Clerk-Level I |
$ 254 |
$ 277 |
| General Clerk-Level II |
$ 302 |
$ 324 |
| Secretary-Level I |
$ 379 |
$ 347 |
| Secretary-Level II |
$ 447 |
$ 418 |
| Word Processor-Level I |
$ 360 |
$ 363 |
| Word Processor-Level II |
$ 435 |
$ 446 |
| |
PRIVATE SECTOR |
PUBLIC SECTOR |
| Gen Maintenance Worker |
$ 9.61/hour |
$10.72/hour |
| Maintenance Electrician |
$17.03 |
$16.65 |
| Maintenance Machinist |
$16.16 |
$19.22 |
| Maintenance Mech-Machine |
$16.00 |
$14.22 |
| Maintenance Mech-Motor Veh |
$14.99 |
$14.35 |
| Maintenance Pipefitters |
$18.51 |
$17.18 |
| Guards-Level I |
$ 6.40 |
$ 9.35 |
| Guards-Level II |
$11.34 |
$11.35 |
| Janitors |
$ 7.04 |
$ 8.90 |
| Shipping/Receiving Clerk |
$ 9.77 |
$ 9.43 |
| Truckdriver-Light Truck |
$ 9.19 |
$ 9.61 |
| Truckdriver-Medium Truck |
$14.11 |
$11.34 |
| Truckdriver-Heavy Truck |
$12.20 |
$12.98 |
4Bradley R. Braden and Stephanie L. Hyland, "Cost of Employee Compensation in Public and Private Sectors," Monthly Labor Review, May 1993, p.17.
5Occupational Compensation Survey Program, (Bureau of Labor Statistics, July 1993).
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