Biden to Boost Federal Employee Pay in 2022
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden formally unveiled plans on Friday to give civilian employees of the federal government a pay raise, effective Jan. 1, 2022.
In a letter to House and Senate leadership, Biden said the across-the-board base pay increase will be 2.2% and locality pay increases will average 0.5%, resulting in an overall average increase of 2.7% for civilian Federal employees.
This is the first time the Biden administration has indicated its specific plans for locality-based pay adjustments.
Previously, the White House recommended a 2.7% federal pay raise for civilian employees in its 2022 budget request, but it didn’t spell out how locality pay would fit into the equation.
An annual across-the-board pay adjustment formula in the Federal Employees Pay Comparability Act sets raises for most federal employees under the General Schedule, but as Biden did Friday, most presidents choose to go their own way in this regard.
Federal pay raises would go into effect during the first pay period in January.
No pay adjustments for federal employees are official until the president signs an executive order formally implementing them, which usually occurs near the end of the calendar year.
