<p>I've been working in consulting engineering for the past year and am currently doing masters. At my company, pretty much everyone would leave at the drop of a hat to get a government job. These government jobs require less work, are more secure and at the junior level, even pay more. </p>
<p>So since we're all behind our screen names here, how many of us would rather work in the government than in the private sector?</p>
<p>Not I! Unless it’s for national defense.</p>
<p>Speaking as a Ph.D candidate, some of the government labs (outside the national labs) aren’t too bad, but working an average government job is terrible. It’s practically impossible to fire someone, so imagine what the average worker becomes over time as the good ones get fed up. My father wasn’t able to fire a secretary who had, over time, become legally blind and fairly demented, for example.</p>
<p>I had a government job with a department of transportation and could not get out fast enough. </p>
<p>It’s difficult to get things done if you have the initiative because of all the red tape. There are rules that have to be followed no matter what, even if they don’t make sense for the specific situation at hand. Rather than doing the right thing, I was encouraged by my superiors to look the other way and not get involved at all since the situation at hand didn’t fall into our jurisdiction. All I wanted to do was to call the government agency that could correct the problem, and my boss told me no. I eventually called them anyway as an anonymous private citizen in order to prevent an accident from happening.</p>
<p>Yes, I agree government jobs require less work. People actually frown upon you if you do more than the minimal requirements. Yes, they are more secure. During orientation, HR said I can’t get fired after my probation period, unless I do something extremely wrong. I wouldn’t say it pays more though; my entry-level salary in the private sector was 20% more than what I would have received had I stayed with the DOT after college.</p>
<p>I don’t want to work in the public sector because I’d rather accomplish something. You’d have to drag me back kicking and screaming.</p>
<p>so in the states government jobs actually pay less?</p>
<p>Here in Canada, government engineering positions start at 65k while private sector civil engineering positions start at 50k</p>
<p>can international students get those once they are permanent residents?</p>
<p>I would say as a general rule for typical positions, yes, government jobs do pay less than private sector positions.</p>
<p>As for eligibility, you’d really have to look at each position’s requirements.</p>
<p>Gov’t jobs usually starts higher than private but private jobs will out earn gov’t in the long run (assuming ideal condition where you’d never get laid off in private).
I’ve worked in private, then gov’t and currently in a quasi-gov’t, and I like this one the best…</p>
<p>How high have you seen governments pay entry-level engineers? The highest I’ve seen is approximately $53k.</p>
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<p>I would almost agree with this and say contracting for national defense. You get paid $30,000 to $60,000 more for the same private-sector job along with the stability and reduced stress of a government job.</p>
<p>It’s probably best to go this route after you have done enough time in the more-volatile private-sector and do not mind being slightly behind the technology curve. I am not sold on doing a CS job in the government (state/feds) within you first 10 years after college. You won’t get to play with the latest “toys” has fast and often.</p>
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LA county and LA city engineers starts at 60ish.
Engineers for LA water and power and other local public utilities starts at around 70ish. My friends work for private utilities and they started at 70 5 years ago… So maybe about 80 today?</p>
<p>If you include benefits, I think engrs at govt actually make more than private.</p>
<p>rheidzan “Gov’t jobs usually starts higher than private but private jobs will out earn gov’t in the long run (assuming ideal condition where you’d never get laid off in private).”</p>
<p>If you don’t do co-op then an engineer fresh out of college may only qualify for a GS-9 (starting salary 41.5k). If you live in a high cost area then it might get bumped up to around 50k. A long time ago I worked in the govt and I can tell you that it is very difficult to get top students to consider working in the govt because of the starting salaries.</p>
<p>Not all Govt jobs may be as cushy as the stereotype. It really depends upon the agency; the specific group; and whether your co-workers are just clerical workers or professionals. Many jobs require lots of OT and travel 30-50%. Oh, and people do get Riffed.</p>
<p>Can anyone relate to government contract jobs? Seems like those people have it made:</p>
<p>[D.C</a>. enclaves reap rewards of contracting boom as federal dollars fuel wealth - The Washington Post](<a href=“http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-enclaves-reap-rewards-of-contracting-boom-as-federal-dollars-fuel-wealth/2011/06/27/gIQAWQC5HJ_story.html]D.C”>http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-enclaves-reap-rewards-of-contracting-boom-as-federal-dollars-fuel-wealth/2011/06/27/gIQAWQC5HJ_story.html)</p>
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<p>Well, I kind of hate that this article is getting out because I DO benefit from the government contracting industry. Be as it may, I will attempt to explain WHY this happens…</p>
<p>1) There are some actual government workers that are “in the trenches” in engineering but WAY too many of them are not. Since there has to be almost an act of GOD to actually fire a government worker, the incentive for continuous “work drive” is not there. I have to admit myself, there should be NO DAMN REASON for a 100-person engineering staff for a particular project should have 75 contractors…no damn reason.</p>
<p>2) USA Foreign Policies + the concept of Prisoner’s Dilemma (look it up) = continuous reasons to sustain national defense. As long as your nation, the USA (regardless of it’s current debt crisis) is still perceived as a prosperous nation, you can NEVER put your guard down. Therefore there will always be national defense. Add on some meddling by the USA every now and then to create new enemies and conflicts and PRESTO…new reasons for defense which ends up producing more government contracts.</p>
<p>3) Government contracting provides almost the job security as a real government employee with more salary than the private industry for the same job. On top of that, you (contractor) basically wait to be directed by the government employee. You move at their pace…which is usually less paced that pure private sector.</p>
<p>^That sounds excellent…how did you enter the contracting industry? I might just forget grad school and go for this.</p>