Market-Based Pay for IT Jobs?

Are federal IT specialists the best candidates for a market-sensitive salary system? Howard Risher writes in Federal Computer Week that while this group would benefit most by a market-sensitive system, they're also the least prepared for such a change.

The problem, Risher says, is that the government uses a single 204-page classification standard for all 75,000-plus IT specialists. Also, the General Schedule grades force IT specialists into a rigid, multirung career ladder, and the classification system treats all IT jobs the same. The GS grade structure also makes it impossible to align federal salaries with pay levels in the dynamic IT talent market, he writes, while the predictable career ladder makes it impossible for star performers to earn the rewards available in the private sector.

In addition, a survey analysis conducted by the Office of Personnel Management years ago found that the lowest pay among federal technology jobs is 20 percent below market, while the highest is 27 percent above the market level. "The comparisons are all over the place, which is not surprising because federal salaries have never been aligned with market levels," Risher writes.

What are your thoughts? Would you welcome a market-driven pay system? Even so, would the rigid government pay system ever allow for such a change without first making dramatic reforms?