Federal Pay Raise

On December 23, 2022, President Biden signed an executive order confirming a 4.6% federal pay increase for civilian employees in 2023. Service members will receive the same 4.6% military pay increase in 2023, according to the 2023 defense budget.

The federal pay increase will provide a 4.1% pay increase across the board for General Schedule employees and a 0.5% locality pay adjustment, totaling 4.6 percent.

Find the current 2023 military pay rates here.

2023 General Schedule (GS) Pay Tables and Calculators

• Locality Pay Tables
• General Schedule Calculator
• Special Rate Tables
• All other federal pay and leave information

2023 General Schedule (GS) Tables

GRADE	STEP 1	STEP 2	STEP 3	STEP 4	STEP 5	STEP 6	STEP 7	STEP 8	STEP 9	STEP 10	WITHIN GRADE AMOUNTS
1	20,999	21,704	22,401	23,097	23,794	24,202	24,893	25,589	25,617	26,273	VARIES
2	23,612	24,174	24,956	25,617	25,906	26,668	27,430	28,192	28,954	29,716	VARIES
3	25,764	26,623	27,482	28,341	29,200	30,059	30,918	31,777	32,636	33,495	859
4	28,921	29,885	30,849	31,813	32,777	33,741	34,705	35,669	36,633	37,597	964
5	32,357	33,436	34,515	35,594	36,673	37,752	38,831	39,910	40,989	42,068	1,079
6	36,070	37,272	38,474	39,676	40,878	42,080	43,282	44,484	45,686	46,888	1,202
7	40,082	41,418	42,754	44,090	45,426	46,762	48,098	49,434	50,770	52,106	1,336
8	44,389	45,869	47,349	48,829	50,309	51,789	53,269	54,749	56,229	57,709	1,480
9	49,028	50,662	52,296	53,930	55,564	57,198	58,832	60,466	62,100	63,734	1,634
10	53,990	55,790	57,590	59,390	61,190	62,990	64,790	66,590	68,390	70,190	1,800
11	59,319	61,296	63,273	65,250	67,227	69,204	71,181	73,158	75,135	77,112	1,977
12	71,099	73,469	75,839	78,209	80,579	82,949	85,319	87,689	90,059	92,429	2,370
13	84,546	87,364	90,182	93,000	95,818	98,636	101,454	104,272	107,090	109,908	2,818
14	99,908	103,238	106,568	109,898	113,228	116,558	119,888	123,218	126,548	129,878	3,330
15	117,518	121,435	125,352	129,269	133,186	137,103	141,020	144,937	148,854	152,771	3,917

Veterans in the Federal Workforce

According to the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), Veterans represented approximately one-third (30%) of the total U.S. federal workforce in fiscal year 2020. The highest percentages of Veterans work in the Departments of Defense, Transportation, Veterans Affairs and Homeland Security.

About Federal Pay (General Schedule Classification and Pay)

The General Schedule (GS) classification and pay system cover most civilian white-collar federal employees (roughly 2.2 million worldwide) in professional, technical, administrative and clerical positions. OPM administers GS classification standards, qualifications, pay structure and related human resources policies for the government. Agencies classify their GS positions and appoint and pay GS employees according to OPM guidelines and federal law.

The General Schedule has 15 grades. GS-1  is the lowest. GS-15 is the highest. Each of the 15 pay grades has 10-step rates.

Employees can move to the next step (a kind of pay raise known as a “within-grade step increase”) based on acceptable job performance and the following periods of service:

• One year at steps 1-3
• Two years at steps 4-6
• Three years at steps 7-9

It normally takes 18 years to advance from step 1 to step 10 within a single GS grade, if an employee remains in that grade. However, employees with outstanding performance ratings may receive up to one additional quality step increase per year, according to OPM.

Each step is worth about 3% of the federal employee’s salary.

Federal employees at the GS-2 level need at least a high school diploma, according to the VA. At GS-5, employees need a bachelor’s degree. At levels GS-9 and higher, employees should have at least a master’s degree.

Locality Pay

Locality pay is an adjustment for civilian federal employees in specified occupations and geographic locations. Locality pay reflects private-sector salaries for similar jobs in similar areas.

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM)

The Office of Personnel Management provides policy leadership and expertise on a variety of government-wide pay programs for federal employees, including the General Schedule (GS), Law Enforcement Officer Pay Schedules and the Federal Wage System (FWS).

Federal Pay Agencies

Federal pay agencies include cabinet departments and large independent agencies but not mid-to small-sized agencies. 

• Cabinet Department Agencies: Agriculture, the Air Force, the Army, Commerce, Defense, Education, Energy, Justice, Labor, Health and Human Services (HHS), Homeland Security, Housing and Urban Development (HUD), State, the Interior, the Navy, Transportation, Treasury, Veterans Affairs
• Large Independent Agencies: Agency for International Development (AID), Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), Court Services and Offender Supervision Agency for the District of Columbia, Federal Reserve System (FSR), Federal Trade Commission (FTC), General Services Administration (SSA), Broadcasting Board of Governors, Government Printing Office (SSA), National Science Foundation (SSA), National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), Nuclear Regulatory Commission (SSA), Securities and Exchange Commission (OFF), Small Business Administration (SBA), Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Smithsonian Institution, Social Security Administration (SSA)

Federal Employees by the Numbers

The Office of Personnel Management’s most updated data on federal employees is from 2017:

• Virginia (144,295), Washington D.C., (141,367), California (152,446) and Maryland (120,705) have the most federal employees, according to 2017 OPM data.
• More than 15% of federal workers work in the DMV area, including Washington, D.C., and parts of Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia, according to OPM’s 2017 data.
• Less than 1.5% of federal employees work outside the United States, according to OPM’s 2017 data.
• Roughly 36% of federal GS employees work for the Department of Defense, according to OPM’s 2017 data.

Difference Between COLA and Federal Pay Increases

Pay increases for current federal workers differ from federal cost-of-living adjustments for retirees. 

Changes in private-sector wages and salaries drive federal pay increases. Federal pay increases help the government compete for talent by paying employees in line with what the private-sector offers.

Increases in the CPI-W inflation measurement determine cost-of-living adjustments (COLA) The CPI-W measures changes in the price of a market basket of consumer goods and services.

COLA ensures that a retiree’s income can continue to purchase the same amount of goods and services after years of retirement that it purchased at the start of retirement.

General Schedule (GS) Pay Increase History

Year	Increase	Year	Increase
2023	4.6%	2009	2.90%
2022	2.20%	2008	2.50%
2021	1.00%	2007	1.70%
2020	2.60%	2006	2.10%
2019	1.40%	2005	2.50%
2018	1.40%	2004	2.70%
2017	1.00%	2003	3.10%
2016	1.00%	2002	3.60%
2015	1.00%	2001	2.70%
2014	1.00%	2000	3.80%
2013	0.00%	1999	3.10%
2012	0.00%	1998	2.30%
2011	0.00%	1997	2.30%
2010	1.50%	1996	2.00%

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