Trump says government won't give civilian employees raises in 2019

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3. Trump Formalizes Federal Pay Freeze Plan for 2019

Trump Formalizes Federal Pay Freeze Plan for 2019

By Erich Wagner | 1:00 PM ET

President Trump on Thursday formally announced that he would pursue a pay freeze for civilian federal employees in 2019, increasing the likelihood of a fight with Congress next month.

Trump needed to formalize an alternative compensation plan for 2019 by tomorrow, or else a 25 percent increase in locality pay and 2.1 percent increase in across-the-board raises would automatically kick in in accordance with the 1990 Federal Employees Pay Comparability Act. He initially floated the prospect of a pay freeze for civilian feds in his fiscal 2019 budget proposal earlier this year. ... “I have determined that for 2019, both across-the-board pay increases and locality pay increases will be set at zero,” Trump wrote. “These alternative pay plan decisions will not materially affect our ability to attract and retain a well-qualified federal workforce.”

The announcement comes weeks after the Senate included a 1.9 percent pay increase for federal workers in one of its minibus spending bills, and after the House in its own legislation did not broach the issue of federal compensation, effectively endorsing the pay freeze. Next week, both chambers will begin negotiations to iron out the differences between the two versions of the spending package.

If Congress chooses to adopt the Senate’s proposed pay increase, that would effectively override Trump’s pay freeze. Although the White House has announced its opposition to the pay increase, it has not issued a veto threat over the provision.