VA Pay increase canceled

[WisNeuro]

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Trump cancels pay raises for federal employees - CNNPolitics

Ouch, locality and COL increase both canceled for 2019. Hope y'all are ready for a substantial pay cut when you factor in inflation.

Also, get out while the getting's good.

 

[psychRA]

We're already having trouble retaining staff in our area, not because people want to leave but because other employers can offer a lot more money. This news is incredibly frustrating.

 

[WisNeuro]

We're already having trouble retaining staff in our area, not because people want to leave but because other employers can offer a lot more money. This news is incredibly frustrating.

This is definitely true. I walked into a 15%ish pay increase when I left the VA last year, and got a 4% raise at the start of 2018.

 

[Rivi]

It isn’t cancelled, the pay cut is just being proposed. I wouldn’t worry about it.

Via NPR:
“The letter, while indicative of the Trump administration's often-adversarial stance toward the two million-member federal workforce, is largely symbolic. Congress will ultimately decide whether federal workers get a raise.

The Senate has approved a 1.9 percent pay hike as part of a spending bill for federal agencies, while the House included no raise. It will be up to congressional negotiators to arrive at a compromise. And so far, the administration has not threatened to veto the spending bill if it includes a pay raise.”

 

[cara susanna]

So glad that we gave tax cuts to billionaires, though!

 

[PsyDr]

Remind me: the VA is an awesome place to work because....

 

[Pragma]

Remind me: the VA is an awesome place to work because....

Kind of depends on a number of factors. It's a good starting job for a lot of early career folks, but I wouldn't consider it the beacon of upward mobility. Job security isn't so bad. Grant-getting isn't as bad as folks dependent on other federal agencies. Moreover, this is for all federal employees, not just VA. Benefits are generally pretty good, and retirement is fairly generous (matching up to 5% + pension, although the pension isn't awesome). It's not where I would make my career, but I think a lot of folks enjoy the population and if you are working at the right VA for your interests, it can be a good career. It's probably better for academically-oriented folks that are tolerant of the bureaucracy. People with Merit awards and such. But the outlook is interesting to consider. It is the largest employer of psychologists in the US, last time I checked. Moreover, a lot of institutions have not been giving raises in recent years at all, or give minimal ones in intervals that include years without raises. Just depends on your values as a provider.

 

[WisNeuro]

It isn’t cancelled, the pay cut is just being proposed. I wouldn’t worry about it.

Via NPR:
“The letter, while indicative of the Trump administration's often-adversarial stance toward the two million-member federal workforce, is largely symbolic. Congress will ultimately decide whether federal workers get a raise.

The Senate has approved a 1.9 percent pay hike as part of a spending bill for federal agencies, while the House included no raise. It will be up to congressional negotiators to arrive at a compromise. And so far, the administration has not threatened to veto the spending bill if it includes a pay raise.”

Looks like VA workers are hoping for a blue wave in November.

 

[psychrat]

Remind me: the VA is an awesome place to work because....

The thing is a lot of other agencies have raise freezes. Private practice rates for those on insurance panels has not seen a drastic increase in rates, and most private or group practice jobs do not offer benefits (health insurance. 401k, pension). I feel like the VA is one of the last agencies (although it is changing) to respect psychologists as providers and separate them from mid-level practitioners, at least for those of us are not neuropsych :-/

 

[BuckeyeLove]

I feel like the VA is one of the last agencies (although it is changing) to respect psychologists as providers and separate them from mid-level practitioners, at least for those of us are not neuropsych :-/

I might be biased in this, but both state systems I've worked in at state psychiatric facilities I've always felt did a really solid job with this.

 

[psychRA]

I've never had to deal with an insurance company. Not even once in my career. To me, that's priceless.

There are certainly pros and cons to working in the VA system. I find that the positives outweigh the negatives but it's not for everyone.

 

[WisNeuro]

I've never had to deal with an insurance company. Not even once in my career. To me, that's priceless.

There are certainly pros and cons to working in the VA system. I find that the positives outweigh the negatives but it's not for everyone.

Comes up in private practice, but not in most institution jobs. I am salary, so I don't care if an insurance company is late paying a claim. I'd never even know, our billers, coders and prior auth people handle 99% of it. I have to fill out a prior auth form for some patients, but it's only about once every two weeks, and takes me about 2 minutes as my assistant fills most of it out. Small price to pay for me not to have to deal with half of my patients invalidating their evaluations. To each their own, but I have been so much happier, and wealthier, since I left the system.

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

I thought leaving commercial insurance would solve most of my admin/paperwork frustrations...but it hasn’t. I still have adjusters for workers comp cases and lawyers for my medicolegal work to get approval, both of which often take weeks to get handled. Thank god for a great assistant....and a 50-100% raise in income, which I don’t mind.

 

[psychrat]

I thought leaving commercial insurance would solve most of my admin/paperwork frustrations...but it hasn’t. I still have adjusters for workers comp cases and lawyers for my medicolegal work to get approval, both of which often take weeks to get handled. Thank god for a great assistant....and a 50-100% raise in income, which I don’t mind.

It sounds like you are doing quite well financially! If I recall you are a neuropsychologist? How long did you work at the VA and did you open a private practice after? It seems like many people work at the VA early career and then move on to private practice. In my over saturated area, the VA is one of the better paying gigs outside of having a private practice that is either cash based or limited insurance. It seems like so many places try to take advantage bc mid level practitioners are a dime a dozen. Psychologists in general need to do a better job advocating for themselves and developing business skills. You seem like you are good at both.