thedrifter
05-11-05, 05:11 AM
May 16, 2005
How your pay stacks up
Think you could make more on the outside? Maybe not
Times staff
When Marine Corps Times began its annual “How Your Pay Stacks Up” comparison of military and civilian wages more than a decade ago, the gap between average military and private-sector pay stood at 12 percentage points; troops were paying up to 19 percent of their off-base housing costs out of pocket; and military pay raises were puny — as low as 2.2 percent in 1994.
Of course, for much of the 1990s, the Defense Department was not overly concerned; it was in the midst of the post-Cold War drawdown, actively seeking to shed tens of thousands of active-duty service members.
But Pentagon leaders learned a hard lesson when the drawdown ended toward the close of the decade. After five years of pay raises of no more than 3 percent from 1994 to 1998, the military “pay gap” stood at more than 13 percentage points — and the experienced people whom the services badly wanted to keep, particularly midgrade and senior enlisted leaders, were leaving in droves.
Thus began a policy reversal that saw five straight years of robust minimum pay raises and additional targeted raises for upper enlisted grades, along with a five-year program to increase the value of housing allowances.
Today, troops may look to leave for other reasons — especially when they stack their pay against operational pressures of the ongoing, large-scale missions in Iraq and Afghanistan.
“I think, without fail, we are underpaid and under-appreciated considering the sacrifices given,” said Chief Air Traffic Controller Trevor Rowe, assigned to the amphibious assault ship Nassau in Norfolk, Va.
But most volunteers for this year’s “How Your Pay Stacks Up” say their pay and benefits, on the whole, are not too bad.
“I’m doing fine, honestly,” said Gunnery Sgt. Scott Stalker, an intelligence analyst based at Camp Smith, Hawaii. “Military pay has come a long way. Anyone would accept more money ... you always want more. But being a single guy, 30 years old, I have all the toys I need, and the Marine Corps is paying for my education.”
And other benefits only enhance the value of basic pay, said Army 1st Lt. Chris McPhink, a registered nurse at Tripler Army Medical Center in Hawaii.
“Unlike civilians, 40 percent of my pay is not taxed,” he said, referring to his housing and food allowances.
“Not to mention the cheap life insurance, great medical benefits, and retirement after just 20 years,” said McPhink, a former enlisted infantryman with 12 years of service. “Another benefit most people never think of is the education benefits. The Army sent me to Advanced Cardiac Life Support class, a one-week class on biological warfare for medical providers ... and will also pay for my master’s degree.
“Military pay is just as good as a lot of jobs in the civilian market, but usually with better perks,” he said.
“How many jobs out there give 30 days of paid vacation and free medical benefits?” asked Information Systems Technician 1st Class LouShawda Grant, based at Naval Station Mayport, Fla. “When you think about the different things you get that civilians don’t, I think [military pay] stacks up higher.”
Certainly, many service members have skills for which they could earn bigger paychecks on the outside, such as Air Force Staff Sgt. Isaac Maraspini, a biomedical equipment repair technician at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo. But they cite other reasons for staying in uniform.
“I can get out of the military and almost double my income,” Maraspini said. “In a career field like ours, I’m getting offers upwards of $70,000, with other benefits on top. And that gets me thinking about it. But as long as I can stay in for retirement, I will. What guarantee can that company give that it will be around in five years? Job stability is important.”
Service members also consistently cite the satisfaction that comes from doing something you love in service to your country as a strong reason for staying in.
“Military members are not in service for the pay,” said Army Staff Sgt. Brett Knutson, a senior power station electrician in Heidelberg, Germany. “If you are, you’re in the wrong business.”
Marine Staff Sgt. Julio Gonzalez, a motor transport chief at Marine Corps Base Hawaii, calls his job “the best thing that has ever happened to me. It has sent me and my family all over the world and has given me a sense of leadership and authority that is needed to get the job done right the first time.”
But Gonzalez, a married father of five, acknowledged that pay could be better. “It’s hard at times. I’ve had to get a second job just to get by, and that’s with the wife working a good-paying job, too.”
Others are even less content. Enlisted members in pay grades E-5 and below, in particular, feel left out of the improving pay trends in recent years.
Hospital Corpsman 3rd Class Christopher Lucas, an X-ray technician at San Diego Naval Medical Center, works part time in off-base civilian hospitals to help pay the bills in his high-cost area.
Lucas, married with one child, is applying for a home mortgage. If it comes through, Lucas thinks he will “have to get out” when his enlistment is up.
“In three years, when I go back to sea duty and end up on some ship in the middle of nowhere, it would be hard to pay the bills” without the extra income from a second job, he said.
The issue of lagging pay for junior members has not gone unrecognized by more senior personnel who have seen robust raises in recent years.
“My pay’s not bad,” said Army 1st Sgt. Teddy Robinson, a medical laboratory technician at Fort Detrick, Md. “But the Army should look at the pay scale in relation to junior soldiers and junior officers and increase it.”
Along those lines, Lt. Scott Ingram, a Navy chaplain in San Diego, surely spoke for many service members when he offered this message to Pentagon leaders:
“I think there is always room for improving how well we are compensated.”
Ellie
How your pay stacks up
Think you could make more on the outside? Maybe not
Times staff
When Marine Corps Times began its annual “How Your Pay Stacks Up” comparison of military and civilian wages more than a decade ago, the gap between average military and private-sector pay stood at 12 percentage points; troops were paying up to 19 percent of their off-base housing costs out of pocket; and military pay raises were puny — as low as 2.2 percent in 1994.
Of course, for much of the 1990s, the Defense Department was not overly concerned; it was in the midst of the post-Cold War drawdown, actively seeking to shed tens of thousands of active-duty service members.
But Pentagon leaders learned a hard lesson when the drawdown ended toward the close of the decade. After five years of pay raises of no more than 3 percent from 1994 to 1998, the military “pay gap” stood at more than 13 percentage points — and the experienced people whom the services badly wanted to keep, particularly midgrade and senior enlisted leaders, were leaving in droves.
Thus began a policy reversal that saw five straight years of robust minimum pay raises and additional targeted raises for upper enlisted grades, along with a five-year program to increase the value of housing allowances.
Today, troops may look to leave for other reasons — especially when they stack their pay against operational pressures of the ongoing, large-scale missions in Iraq and Afghanistan.
“I think, without fail, we are underpaid and under-appreciated considering the sacrifices given,” said Chief Air Traffic Controller Trevor Rowe, assigned to the amphibious assault ship Nassau in Norfolk, Va.
But most volunteers for this year’s “How Your Pay Stacks Up” say their pay and benefits, on the whole, are not too bad.
“I’m doing fine, honestly,” said Gunnery Sgt. Scott Stalker, an intelligence analyst based at Camp Smith, Hawaii. “Military pay has come a long way. Anyone would accept more money ... you always want more. But being a single guy, 30 years old, I have all the toys I need, and the Marine Corps is paying for my education.”
And other benefits only enhance the value of basic pay, said Army 1st Lt. Chris McPhink, a registered nurse at Tripler Army Medical Center in Hawaii.
“Unlike civilians, 40 percent of my pay is not taxed,” he said, referring to his housing and food allowances.
“Not to mention the cheap life insurance, great medical benefits, and retirement after just 20 years,” said McPhink, a former enlisted infantryman with 12 years of service. “Another benefit most people never think of is the education benefits. The Army sent me to Advanced Cardiac Life Support class, a one-week class on biological warfare for medical providers ... and will also pay for my master’s degree.
“Military pay is just as good as a lot of jobs in the civilian market, but usually with better perks,” he said.
“How many jobs out there give 30 days of paid vacation and free medical benefits?” asked Information Systems Technician 1st Class LouShawda Grant, based at Naval Station Mayport, Fla. “When you think about the different things you get that civilians don’t, I think [military pay] stacks up higher.”
Certainly, many service members have skills for which they could earn bigger paychecks on the outside, such as Air Force Staff Sgt. Isaac Maraspini, a biomedical equipment repair technician at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo. But they cite other reasons for staying in uniform.
“I can get out of the military and almost double my income,” Maraspini said. “In a career field like ours, I’m getting offers upwards of $70,000, with other benefits on top. And that gets me thinking about it. But as long as I can stay in for retirement, I will. What guarantee can that company give that it will be around in five years? Job stability is important.”
Service members also consistently cite the satisfaction that comes from doing something you love in service to your country as a strong reason for staying in.
“Military members are not in service for the pay,” said Army Staff Sgt. Brett Knutson, a senior power station electrician in Heidelberg, Germany. “If you are, you’re in the wrong business.”
Marine Staff Sgt. Julio Gonzalez, a motor transport chief at Marine Corps Base Hawaii, calls his job “the best thing that has ever happened to me. It has sent me and my family all over the world and has given me a sense of leadership and authority that is needed to get the job done right the first time.”
But Gonzalez, a married father of five, acknowledged that pay could be better. “It’s hard at times. I’ve had to get a second job just to get by, and that’s with the wife working a good-paying job, too.”
Others are even less content. Enlisted members in pay grades E-5 and below, in particular, feel left out of the improving pay trends in recent years.
Hospital Corpsman 3rd Class Christopher Lucas, an X-ray technician at San Diego Naval Medical Center, works part time in off-base civilian hospitals to help pay the bills in his high-cost area.
Lucas, married with one child, is applying for a home mortgage. If it comes through, Lucas thinks he will “have to get out” when his enlistment is up.
“In three years, when I go back to sea duty and end up on some ship in the middle of nowhere, it would be hard to pay the bills” without the extra income from a second job, he said.
The issue of lagging pay for junior members has not gone unrecognized by more senior personnel who have seen robust raises in recent years.
“My pay’s not bad,” said Army 1st Sgt. Teddy Robinson, a medical laboratory technician at Fort Detrick, Md. “But the Army should look at the pay scale in relation to junior soldiers and junior officers and increase it.”
Along those lines, Lt. Scott Ingram, a Navy chaplain in San Diego, surely spoke for many service members when he offered this message to Pentagon leaders:
“I think there is always room for improving how well we are compensated.”
Ellie