I used to work for the state so I know that public employees are vilified and eviscerated is inappropriate. And as much as some advocate for the privatization of government services, I also know that with few exceptions the public sector is more productive and cost efficient than the private sector.

Sometimes people here demonize professions and people randomly, we all need to stop and think
before we post.

I feel for you. I do not understand where all of this hatred for government workers is coming from. The GOP politicians somehow do not see themselves as government workers.

They seem to be oblivious to the fact that THEY and THEIR STAFF are federal workers as well. Their Staff sizes have doubled over the past decade with the size of government and their office budgets have as well.

Might get some days off myself. The pay cut will stink but I am actually looking forward to some three day weekends, trying to look at the bright side

when furloughed, before Deep-Sixed (down-sized), and then retired.

I've been a federal employee three different times, been a contractor or worked in the civilian world before and in between, not scared Already vested in FERS and a military retirement, I could start working on something else if they let me loose.

A more likely scenario is that the furlough will come in the middle of the week since everyone in the office may not be able to take off the same day. I've encountered that situation previously.

I've always liked Wednesdays as well, it's like a mini weekend in the middle.

I don't hate you, I love you. People like you, like firefighters and so many others, make the world a better place to live for me and mine. I have many friends who are public workers that are an inspiration to me as they don't make much money but really believe in what they do for others. I have called my friends who are federal workers and told them I am sorry that this is happening to them, they are preparing for the loss. They are more worried for those co-workers who are not as well of because they are newer and don't have anything in reserve. They are furious at Sequester but understand who it is that wants the government shut down. Best wishes to you, your family and all others like you, Drahthaardogs.

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It's damn encouraging to know that our country can still produce hard-working, dedicated men like yourself to help undo the damage done by others to our ravaged world.

:::applause-applause:::

You deserve better. Far better. Sadly, (channeling Rumsfeld) we go about our daily lives not with the government we wish we had but the government we have.

In the part that works on new aircraft manufacture, and new aircraft parts. We evaluate manufacturers and certify the safety compliance of aircraft design. We work with manufacturers who build the aircraft, and the parts, and the avionics that the airlines use to fly you around the world.

Right now about 6 of my job specialty are working extremely hard to try and get a new fix to the Boeing 787 battery issue fixed. They have been working long hours hand-in-hand with Boeing engineers to come up with safety designs to offset the issue that Boeing is dealing with right now. All the parts in the design have to be checked against design criteria and evaluated against safety standards. Our guys are busy. We also check and verify quality inside nearly 2000 U.S. manufacturers and their suppliers around the world.

Our letters were printed on Wednesday this week, envelopes all stuffed on Thursday, and were dropped in the mail today. They should show up in our office mail boxes on Monday and Tuesday (We have 25 offices around the nation, some as small as two or three people, others as large as 15).

The furlough will mean I will earn about $4,200 less in 2013 than I did in 2012. I am now in my third year of a pay freeze, and the republicans have raised the amount I'll have to contribute to my retirement by 3%, (Meaning my take home pay will be reduced 3%) even though our retirement plan (FERS) is currently fully funded.


I make about 20% less already than I would in industry with my skills. But the hours normally are better- 40 hours a week vs. 60-70, and until now, I didn't have to worry about furloughs in the government.

I guess times have really changed.

The only good news- Many of my former right-winger coworkers are now seeing the light.

I won't let the idiots in the republican party destroy my federal work force. Just motivates me to work that much harder at removing them in the next election cycle. I plan to spend my furlough days divided between picketing at my teabagger Congressman's office, and knocking on doors on behalf of democrats.

We do our best to keep them safe and I know you do it for a hell of a lot less than the folks at Boeing! Fight the good fight!

My small town republican postal worker is seeing the light after I told her why her hours were cut and the postal office in trouble.

More and more the truth is getting out.

We haven't been notified of any furloughs......yet. We are expecting the first round of letters this week or next. I will lose between $3k and $7k in salary this year if this sequester lasts until October. With the cost of living as high as it is in my area, that is a huge chunk of change stolen out of my pocket.

He's been talking to many of his former co-workers and they are so demoralized. Four (+) years of a federal pay freeze, a hiring freeze that ensures that each agent takes on more and more responsibility and a heavier work load have left their mark.

Now the furloughs. Most of his still-employed friends have decades of service, kids gearing up to go to college and years to go before retirement. It's discouraging to deal with when coupled with the disdain heaped on all public employees.

All this complaining just because your losing a few dollars a day.

If you kept getting paid like yesterday, GOP would have to find a way to raise more money. And since your payroll is going down, it probably won't be from you. So where would they go?

To rich people. And that ain't gonna happen because, face it, rich people are more important than you cheap working slobs. The rich run things, and they trickle down on us, so if they have less to trickle, well, that means less trickle on you! We have to keep the rich fat, happy and sassy. It's not Obama's fault you are getting less trickle so don't blame him or blame me because this is just a sarcastic note detailing who the winners are, and who doesn't love a winner?

bad that we are so helpless to be able to do something about this.

you have my deepest sympathy and empathy.

I want a little CREDIT We inspect the food, clean the water, catch the bad guys, support the military. WE ARE NOT PARIAHS! We help our fellow citizens. We benefit this society we all live in and I, for one, am tired of being treated like a leech!

And to that end, others among us who also get federal funding educate our children, fight our fires, and keep protect our wildlife. We all do it for cheap too! We are a damned bargain! What have the Koch brothers ever done to help the people of this country?

sorry if you took it that way. My point is, I do not want people going "poor feds", I want people asking "Why do you hate government employees. They serve our country". Ya know? Not feeling sorry for us, but instead feeling angry that good folks are being villified and everyone seem cool with that.

Does that make sense?

I got it too, from someone who completely misunderstands

I WILL KICK KOCH ASS

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And a sincere thanks for your service as a public employee.

Hired in 1984, witnessed a lot of crazy budget battles.

My career has mostly been field work, switched to more IT a few years back. Often feels like my agency is in the crosshairs, right up there with Big Bird.

B

and I wish I could stop the republicans from attacking public workers.

How nice. Thank you!

and all the other vilified government workers.

Thank you for what you do and thank you for not giving up!

Is not frenzied band of rabid political ideologues just a branch of the republican party? If you cannot see that------? I am unaccustomed to being so speechless.

There are more than a few Democrats who do NOT support federal employees. 43 Democrats voted to freeze our pay. Let's not pretend that there are not a few Dems who do NOT support feds.

talking points spewed by the wingnuts/Corporate Media. Everyone loves beating up on federal employees, and yes, there are some bad apples, just as there are in the private sector. No one's exempt. Still, we are people's favorite whipping post.

Sick and tired of being a pawn in someone's fucking chess game. Feds are REAL people will REAL lives and families to feed!

I might get my first hide here: I'd say that was an asshole hit and run.

The visuals are yougly, I know.

I too am getting tired of this meme that Dems are just innocent victims; too often they either participate in repuke crap or behave like passive bystanders.

no not the meat inspector, or the forestry professional, or the natural resource conservation services employee, or the farm services professional, or the foreign agriculture services, or the grain experts, or the rural development expert;or the home loan expert, yes USDA makes loans to low income people, elderly people, rural people, provide people with rental assistance based upon their needs, ensure those people live in decent housing because inspections take place regularly, making loans because banks will not, offering low-low cost home loans to people who need them, importing goods, exporting goods, food stamps, wic, broadband for rural communities, water conservation, grants, loans, disaster assistance, insurance for crops, insurance for farms, child nutrition, snap

I could go on because there are more, many more. But I work in IT for the department. Making sure these people can do their jobs in the most efficient manner possible with the most advance technology available to them. And budgets have already been cut, more than once, by more than one administration.
All this work get accomplished every day, in addition to whatever the current POTUS wants to see done. The work never stops. Recesses are never taken in order to 'go home to our districts'. We live and work in our district and must make do with the whims of a few individuals in D.C. who have won a popularity contest. Who strut and preen in front of cameras, talking nonsense and gibberish, never making sense, always using double entendres, always trying to look surprised by what is happening, always changing their minds because they know the short term memories of voters.
Government workers NEVER forget.

WE JUST DO OUR JOBS!

Our work load is already backlogged -- the furlough will be catastrophic.

Last edited Sat Mar 2, 2013, 01:19 AM - Edit history (2)

I work for an HIV program that is funded by a Government grant (through HRSA). We're funded through June this year with the current grant cycle, so I'm hoping they sort things out by then. If not, then it is almost certain that the program will be defunded.

He's a good man, a father of a wonderful precocious child. Works for the EPA. He's a husband to a librarian for our local school district-- They are NOT the wealthy people the GOP tries to imply about government workers. They are just like my husband and I -- middle class people.

I have another friend who works for the SEC. Once again -- She's a person with a job. She loves it, but Middle class. She works hard just like you. She's not in charge of regulation. She's working on other things. I don't think we have to know the very minutia of every federal workers job -- most are not the power brokers. Some are simply people with a federal job. More oft than not -- no security clearance. The federal government isn't the bad evil thing we sometimes are told it is. This is why I like you post.

They are people first -- YOU are a person first.

I have a friend that used to work for the DOJ, a lawyer-- one more time, he was middle class -- nothing fancy. He and his wife decided to move back home a few years ago. He left the federal work force. He wanted to do more. Nothing wrong with that.

I have yet another friend, she's worried about the sequester because the non-profit work she does relies on congress doing the right thing for the under served in America. She doesn't know what will happen going forward.

And then there is my Husband. He works for a company that helps school systems ensure that kids don't fall thru the education cracks. They do it with software -- it's available to school systems to use. He makes sure the software includes the kids with the proper data. He's not a contract worker. His company provides a service. If schools can't use that service... yes, I may become concerned.

They all do good work. I don't like how federal employees seem to have been treated as collateral damage from the GOP. This is a ripple effect. I don't like it at all.

I'm of the opinion that (and please understand) not all federal contractors are what the media would like us to believe: Not all contract workers are KBR and Haliburton -- Many are people doing good things. Very good thing, just as federal workers are.

I know you will endure, and I stand with you. This is a terrible thing all around.

I do not hate you.

Those of you NOVAns who have some unexpected free time might wish to consider the fact that Virginia's trout fisheries are teeming over, and the stocked rivers (a dozen places within 1 hour of the junction of I-81 and I-64, about 2 1/2 hours, from DC) have stayed at the optimal temperatures all winter long.

It'll cost you a cool fifty bucks to get the license, trout stamp, and national forest permits, and make sure you have a plan before you leave, but many have been calling this the best trout fishing season ever.

And now you have the time!

We repair and overhaul the crafts that America's sons and daughters take to sea.

I make half of salary I did before being unemployed for almost 2 years. My wages have now been frozen for the the last 3 years. I've paid my dues. Moral at work is low with furloughs scheduled to begin in April. We already see the clampdown on spending. Items that we normally use are in short supply. The contractors that have been doing facility repairs are gone even though the projects aren't complete. I'm sure this will be a year of doing more with less.

I am proud to support our sailors every single day.

I have an uncle who does as well and I really appreciate all that you have done, and will continue to do. I can only hope that the nuts who think the sequester is a good idea, find out very quickly how bad it is for all of us. It's wrong to treat fellow Americans this way. Thank you all again.

I posted in another thread I am a Taxpayer Case Advocate, I work directly with taxpayers addressing issues they have not been resolved for the taxpayer. Just like every other federal agency our workload has exploded and there is literally not enough hours in the day to get our work done.

Congress fiddled around in December (I know you are shocked!), wouldn't make decisions about anything so updates to the tax code could not be programmed timely. Normal times to shut down the system to update computers for the new filing season was all last minute so filing season was delayed. (And if you have Schedule C or Education Credits your return was delayed even further.) And taxpayers are ticked, a lot. So now we are expected to get more done with less time to do it. And yet we are the enemy according to the repugnant GOP.

My agency is staffed by people who really care, want to do a good job, and works hard each and every day to help our taxpayers get issues with the IRS addressed. On a daily basis we deal with Exam, Appeals, Stolen ID, Collections, Liens, Levies and every other issue that could possibly arise.Our work is not one phone call and we are done. We work with some taxpayers for months, even years, to help them. We are lied to, threatened, I hear pain and fear on a daily basis. But there is not a single employee in my office, not one, who slacks off, doesn't care and is just there for the paycheck. Our jobs are impossibly hard with few resources, understaffed and too many people who need help. But according to a lot of people we are the lazy, unmotivated, blood sucking leeches who exist to just make your life miserable.

My job has real consequences for people. It's too bad there will be less time to get it done.

for very efficiently and kindly helping me address an arrears, a few years ago.

STILL laugh when thinking it was more pleasant working with y'all than with my 'stranged husb, when I had to sue him.

I'm afraid that, in this age, you need better p.r.

Mainly from GSA.

have you posted this to FB, or have a friend do that for you?

But still have a job, so not too bad. Making sure the Soldiers and their families have a decent place to live and work is a rewarding job. While there are always to cut costs and work smarter, that is not what the sequester is about.

The RWNJs will point to this as standing strong to put those overpaid Feds and "that one" in their places and show them who still run the country.

As you said, we'll get through this in the short term, but without moving away from the meat cleaver approach, the damage over the 10 year cycle will make only Grover Norquist and his followers happy. This country is truly at a crossroads, we can't let a bunch of Dead-Enders undo 235 years of progress and set us back decades as a country.

This is really about much more than the money.

I'm a Progressive you believes your job is of vital importance not just to the US but to humanity itself.

just changed employer due to a contract switch. No idea if he is going to be affected. Though his Navy retirement should be okay.

Me I work for the State of New York in schools so will have to see if this has any affect on me in the future.

By the way. I believe a evil scientist would claim not to be an evil scientist so why should we believe you?

My husband is a federal employee in the Department of Defense and I am growing tired of everything falling on the backs of government employees. We have not had a raise in three years and now we are going to lose 20% of our pay. My husband is a senior intelligence officer and, of course, if anything goes wrong, they get the blame. I am so tired of the Republicans and their bull. They scream about how they care about the defense of our country, but yet, when it comes to the employees, no raises, cut their pay, etc. And, now, they are looking to cut employee pensions. How do these people sleep at night or look at themselves in the mirror. I know I couldn't, but then again, I tend to care for our fellow man. I am all for congress going through the same thing, 20% cut in pay, no health care, no pensions. This is just disgraceful.

it's not all falling on your backs - I haven't had a raise in years and I watch waves of layoffs year after year - and my pay was cut and my pension taken years ago

the post indicated the pain was all on the backs of fed employees - it isn't - the pain is far and widespread

the hits keep coming for everyone but the 1%

I am NOT discounting what fed workers are going through - simply pointing out THEY ARE NOT ALONE

They're spreading it out evenly, with basically one unpaid day off per week. He used to work in the same field (Logistics Management) for a defense contractor and took a pay cut to become a federal employee. Not to mention the pay freeze since he started. This furlough is going to amount to an up to 7k pay cut through the next few months. Something we can ill afford right now, with his being the only income.

When people say we need to cut defense, and that this sequester is a good start, they need to realize that boondoggle programs aren't touched in this round. This is truly all on the backs of the civilian government workforce, although Active Duty personnel is getting hit, too, with COLA reductions overseas, etc.

People don't realize but a 20% pay cut could cause employes to loose their houses, I wish you the best I know how hard it will be for all employes that have a pay cut. Today with the prices like they are it will be tough. The Gov job was a good move for your future, many times I was offered more money to leave DOD but I stayed and it was worth it, The health ins and the retirement pay make it a good job to have. Best of luck...

I work in the Psychiatry Department. These cuts mean we can't hire the doctors we need to help soldiers who are hurting. On paper we're supposed to be exempt, but in reality these cuts run deep. I'm lucky, double income no kids, but my young co-workers are having to make hard choices now to be ready for a 20% pay cut.

All decisions made by the elected representative of the public now work toward the privatization of elected representation and public services.

Sorry but we do have a bloated military and if you get caught up in the shit then best of luck to you. We need to cut the federal government somewhere and defense is the best place to start.

that makes no sense.

another likely explanation is you didn't read the post you're responding to.