Thrift Savings Plan Archives

Business Insider and Glassdoor.com have teamed up to put together a list of the top 25 technology companies to work for. But even given the perks some companies offer, such as gourmet cafeterias, lax dress codes and state-of-the-art fitness facilities, many of the top companies are struggling with the same human resources challenges as the federal government: inadequate compensation, office politics, overbearing middle management and a lack of work-life balance.

Even number-one rated Google had some negative reviews from employees who said middle managers, who were perhaps hired during the early growth years for convenience rather than qualifications, have stifled career growth. Employees at number-two rated Adobe say they are constantly concerned about layoffs, as upper management seems concerned more with the company's performance on Wall Street than it is with employee morale. Microsoft, which came in at number 11, is said to offer good salaries and room to move up, but its enormous size makes it more difficult for employees to stand out.

Is the grass still greener in the private sector? Or do the federal government's perks - such as competitive pay, generous benefits, job security and a commitment to improving the work-life balance of employees - increase its competitive edge for highly-skilled IT workers?

Republican lawmakers are targeting federal employee pensions this week as part of House Minority Whip Eric Cantor's YouCut program, an online contest designed to highlight government projects that Republican lawmakers think are wasteful.

The contest, which allows participants to vote each week either online or via text message on five possible spending cuts, this week is proposing to update federal employee pensions to reflect private sector practices, a move House Republicans say would save taxpayers more than $4.5 billion over 10 years.

While federal employee pensions are calculated based on the average of an employee's highest earnings over three years, the private sector commonly bases benefits on a five-year average. The government also offers employees who retire at age 55 or older with at least 30 years of service or at age 60 with at least 20 years of service to receive an early benefit equivalent to Social Security until they reach age 62. The Republican's proposal would eliminate the early retirement benefit for those who voluntarily retire early and would base pensions on an employee's earnings over five years, according to the website.

In May, the YouCut contest proposed eliminating the proposed 2011 federal employee raise, which lawmakers estimated would save approximately $2 billion in the first year and $30 billion over 10 years.

But would trimming federal retirement benefits be a good idea, particularly as the government will need to compete with the private sector for top skills, including tech talent, as more seasoned workers retire?

Computerworld on Monday released its 2010 list of the 100 Best Places to Work in IT. The list, which is compiled based on reader nominations, had only one federal winner -- the United States Postal Service -- which came in at 93. Several government contractors, such as CDW, Grant Thornton and Raytheon, also made the cut.

The list also includes the top benefits and other incentives IT workers at leading organizations believe are key to job satisfaction, and this could be useful for federal agencies looking to attract, hire and retain IT professionals. For example, when asked what is most important about their jobs, IT professionals said working in an enjoyable environment (93 percent), being fairly compensated for their work (93 percent) and having access to training opportunities to further their skills (88 percent). IT pros rated the best benefits as paid vacation (75 percent), health insurance (74 percent), profit-sharing and/or 401(k) plans (51 percent), telecommuting (46 percent) and flexible hours (45 percent).

IT professionals also rated overall morale in their departments highly, with 54 percent rating it at very good or excellent. They also noted stress levels to be fairly low, with 66 percent saying their jobs were not at all to somewhat stressful.

Should your agency have made the list? There's always next year, but keep in mind that readers must submit nominations for their agency to be considered. Nominations are now open for the 2011 list.

Dana Bilyeu, whom President Obama has nominated to join the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board, told a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs subcommittee on Thursday that the board needed to work harder to convince young military service members to begin saving early. From a Federal Times article:

Those that are in the beginning of their careers -- 18, 19, 20-year-olds -- often are those that have the hardest time deciding to participate in these programs. They are actually the group that needs to start participating early.

That's a tall order. And it might not be an issue of "deciding to participate," but rather having the means to. Young workers start out their careers making low wages, and just about everything goes to living expenses leaving very little for savings. Even factoids like this one couldn't convince me or my young working friends to begin saving so many (many) years ago:

Who has more money at retirement? Someone who begins at the age of 19 saving $2,000 a year in an Individual Retirement Account and stops at age 27, or someone who begins saving $2,000 a year at the age of 27 and continues until the age of 65? (You know the "surprise" answer, but the difference is somewhat of a shock.)

But there's still the problem: Who has $2,000 a year at age 19 to sock away? Maybe the investment board can figure how to get around that one.