In Uncertain Times, Your FERS Pay Schedule Offers a Rare Kind of Confidence

Hi Friends, Mike Lanway here with AllAboutFERS.com

There’s no denying it—2025 has been a rocky year for a lot of folks in federal service. The news, the budget debates, the shifting policies—it’s enough to make even the most committed FERS employee wonder, “Is this still worth it?”

And I get it. The emotional and mental weight of uncertainty is real. But in the middle of that, I want to shine a light on something solid. Something you can actually count on.

Let’s talk about your FERS pay schedule.

A Reliable Piece in a Shaky Puzzle

With everything feeling unpredictable, your pay schedule is still one of the few places where certainty lives. You know what you’re making this year. You can know what you’ll make next year. And maybe most importantly—you can understand how your pay grows, step by step, grade by grade.

Even if you don’t love the current numbers—especially the 2025 figures—you can focus on something far more powerful: the percentage differences built into the system.

Those differences are your forward momentum.

Why Percentage Changes Matter More Than Dollar Signs

It’s easy to get stuck on what this year’s numbers look like. But I want to encourage you to zoom out a little. Federal pay isn’t just about where you are—it’s about where you’re going.

The pay schedule is designed to give you a clear path:

• Step increases based on time and performance
  
• Grade promotions based on skill, experience, and opportunity
  
• Percentage-based increases that build upon one another
  

So even if Congress is dragging its feet this year, those step and grade differences are still hardwired into your pay structure. And they’re still going to do their job over time.

That’s certainty you can build a life on.

Building a Budget That Feels Sustainable

Here’s where this gets personal.

If you know what’s coming with your pay—and you understand the built-in increases—you can build a budget that actually works.

And when you build a sustainable budget, you don’t just gain control over your money. You gain confidence in your decisions. You gain freedom from constant worry. You gain clarity about what the future holds.

That’s why this matters so much.

The Real Power: Not Just Knowing… but Using

It’s not just about knowing what your pay will be. It’s about using that knowledge to your advantage:

• To set a livable monthly budget today
  
• To prepare for transitions later—into retirement, another agency, or even a private-sector move
  
• To reduce financial anxiety and focus on the parts of life that really matter
  

That’s why we emphasize the pay schedule so much in our work. Because once you start using it as a planning tool—not just a reference sheet—it becomes a stabilizing force in your life.

We’re Here to Help You See the Stability in the System

At All About FERS, we know there’s a lot you can’t control right now. But this? This is something you can lean on.

Let us show you how your pay connects to your long-term goals—your retirement timing, your budget decisions, even your career negotiations.

When you take full advantage of the structure built into your FERS career, you start to see the system in a new light—not just as a job, but as a tool for building your future.

Want to explore that more? Visit AllAboutFERS.com. We’ve got resources, tools, and videos designed to help you build not just a career, but a calm, confident financial path forward.

With care,
Mike Lanway