This article appeared on Forbes.com on July 22, 2010

With government spending impelling huge deficits, budget hawks are looking for ways to reduce the government's burden on taxpayers. One avenue to reduce government expenditures is to bring federal employee compensation in line with those in the private sector. A recent study by the Heritage Foundation's James Sherk shows that workers in comparable fields and occupations are paid disproportionately more when employed by the federal government.

  •  Federal employees' hourly wages are 22% more than workers in the private sector.
  • Aligning federal workers' compensation with market rates would save taxpayers $47 billion a year.
  • When combining wages and total benefits, federal employees earn 30% to 40% more than private-sector workers.
  • Full-time federal employees can take 13 paid sick days a year along with all 10 days of national holidays.
  • The average federal civilian employee earns on average $32,115 a year in non-cash compensation compared to a private sector employee who earns three times less, $9,882 annually.
  •  Federal employees receive 22% more in employer payments toward their health care than their private sector counterparts.