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January 2017 Pay Examples

Examples of January 2017 Pay Computations

Below are examples showing how various categories of General Schedule (GS) employees will be affected by the January 2017 pay adjustments. Annual rates are shown. The annual rate providing the highest entitlement (shown in bold font) is used to calculate the employee's hourly rate in biweekly pay computations. An hourly rate is computed by dividing the annual rate by 2,087 and rounding the result to the nearest cent. (Note: Firefighters compensated under 5 U.S.C. 5545b are subject to special pay computation rules, including the use of an hourly rate computed using a 2,756-hour divisor. See 5 CFR part 550, subpart M.) These examples do not include all of the steps for how pay tables are constructed and increased. Please see the pay tables for the current rates.

1. GS employee.

Grade/step: GS-9, step 5.
Location: Rest of U.S. locality pay area.

2016 GS rate: $48,531.
2016 locality rate: $55,495 ($48,531 x 1.1435).

2017 GS rate: $49,019 (after 1.0% across-the-board increase).
2017 locality rate: $56,401 ($49,019 x 1.1506).

2. GS employee promoted on same day the 2017 pay adjustments take effect (STANDARD METHOD).

Grade/step: GS-0201-11, step 5, promoted to GS-0201-12.
Location of both positions: Rest of U.S. locality pay area.
Reference: 5 CFR 531.207 and 531.214(d)(3).

Step 1: Apply the across-the-board pay adjustment to the GS-11, step 5, rate.

2016 GS rate: $58,719.
2016 locality rate: $67,145 ($58,719 x 1.1435).

2017 GS rate: $59,305 (after 1.0% across-the-board increase).
2017 locality rate $68,236 ($59,305 x 1.1506).

Step 2: Process the promotion to GS-12 using the standard method, since the employee is covered by the same pay schedules before and after promotion.

Step A: No geographic conversion.

Step B: Increase GS (base) rate by two within-grade increases to GS-11, step 7 ($62,793).

Step C: The payable (highest) rate of basic pay for GS-11, step 7, is 2017-RUS at $72,250.

Step D: The highest applicable rate range for the employee's position of record after promotion is the GS-12 locality rate range in the 2017-RUS locality rate schedule. The lowest step rate in that range that equals or exceeds the GS-11, step 7, RUS locality rate is 2017-RUS, GS-12, step 2, at $74,574.

2017 GS rate: $64,813.
2017 locality rate: $74,574.

3. GS employee promoted on same day the 2017 pay adjustments take effect from a non-special rate position to a special rate position (ALTERNATE METHOD).

Grade/step: GS-0201-11, step 5, promoted to GS-0180-12.
Location of both positions: Rest of U.S. locality pay area.
GS-12 position covered by special rate schedule 0497.
Reference: 5 CFR 531.207 and 531.214(d)(4).

Step 1: Apply the across-the-board pay adjustment to the GS-11, step 5, rate.

2016 GS rate: $58,719.
2016 locality rate: $67,145 ($58,719 x 1.1435).

2017 GS rate: $59,305 (after 1.0% across-the-board increase).
2017 locality rate: $68,236 ($59,305 x 1.1506).

Step 2: Process the promotion to GS-12 using the alternate method, since different pay schedules apply before and after promotion and the alternate method produces a higher payable rate upon promotion than the standard method.

Step A: No geographic conversion.

Step B: Increase GS rate by two within-grade increases to GS-11, step 7 ($62,793).

Step C: The payable (highest) rate of basic pay for GS-11, step 7, is 2017-RUS at $72,250.

Step D: If the employee were promoted to a GS-12 position in the 0201 occupational series (non-special rate), the highest applicable rate range for that GS-12 position after promotion would be the GS-12 RUS locality rate range. The GS-12, step 2, locality rate ($74,574) is the lowest step rate in that range that equals or exceeds the GS-11, step 7, RUS locality rate.

Step E: Convert the GS-12, step 2, locality rate to the higher GS-12, step 2, special rate that applies to the employee's position after promotion on special rate table 0497. This GS-12, step 2, special rate is the payable rate of basic pay upon promotion ($77,359).

Step F: The standard method would have compared the GS-11, step 7, locality rate ($72,250) directly to the higher GS-12 special rate range and produced a rate of GS-12, step 1 ($75,268). Since the rate produced by the alternate method (GS-12, step 2) is greater than the rate produced by the standard method, the result of the alternate method is used.

2017 GS rate: $64,813 (GS-12, step 2).
2017 locality rate: $74,574 ($64,813 x 1.1506).
2017 special rate: $77,359 ($64,813+ $12,546 special rate supplement).

4. GM employee.

(See example 7 for computing the 2017 pay adjustment for a GM employee receiving a special rate.)

Grade/step: GM-13, step 00 ($89,109-not on step). (See 5 CFR 531.244(a)(1) for a GM employee whose rate of basic pay equals a regular GS step rate.)
Location: Washington, DC, locality pay area.
Reference: 5 CFR 531.244 and 531.245.

Step 1: Subtract the GS-13, step 1, GS rate from the GM employee's GS rate in 2016. (Use the 2016 GS rates.)

2016 GM employee's GS rate: $89,109 (GM employee's GS rate).
2016 GS rate: $73,846 (GS-13, step 1).
Difference: $15,263 ($89,109 - $73,846).

Step 2: Subtract the GS-13, step 1, GS rate from the GS-13, step 10, GS rate. (Use the 2016 GS rates.)

2016 GS rate: $96,004 (GS-13, step 10).
2016 GS rate: $73,846 (GS-13, step 1).
Difference: $22,158 ($96,004 - $73,846).

Step 3: Divide the result of step 1 by the result of step 2. Carry the results to the seventh decimal place and truncate.

$15,263 / $22,158 = 0.6888257.

Step 4: Subtract the GS-13, step 1, GS rate from the GS-13, step 10, GS rate. (Use the 2017 GS rates.)

2017 GS rate: $96,958 (GS-13, step 10).
2017 GS rate: $74,584 (GS-13, step 1).
Difference: $22,374 ($96,958 - $74,584).

Step 5: Multiply the result in step 3 by the result in step 4.

0.6888257 x $22,374 = $15,411.79.

Step 6: Add the result in step 5 to the GS-13, step 1, GS rate (2017) and round to the next higher whole dollar.

$15,411.79 + $74,584 = $89,996
2017 GM employee's GS rate: $89,996 (after applying 1.0% increase by following the above steps under 5 CFR 531.244).
2017 GM locality rate: $114,385 ($89,996 x 1.2710 (2017-DCB)).

5. GS-11 employee receiving a retained rate of pay.

Grade/step: GS-11, step 00: $78,818 (above locality rate range).
Location: Rest of U.S. locality pay area.
Reference: 5 CFR 536.305(a). (See 5 CFR 536.305(b) for cases where a retained rate falls below the range maximum after applying the pay adjustment.)

Step 1: Subtract the GS-11, step 10, locality rate in 2016 from the GS-11, step 10, locality rate in 2017.

2017 locality rate: $78,270 (GS-11, step 10).
2016 locality rate: $77,019 (GS-11, step 10).
Difference: $1,251 ($78,270 - $77,019).

Step 2: Multiple the result of step 1 by 50 percent.

$1,251 X .50 = $626.
Step 3: Add the result of step 2 to the GS-11, step 00, retained rate.

$78,818 + $626 = $79,444.
2017 retained rate: $79,444.

6. Special rate employee where special rate continues to exceed locality rate in January 2017.

Grade/step: GS-5, step 1.
Location: Washington, DC.
Special Rate Schedule: Table 0223.

2016 GS rate: $28,262.
2016 locality rate: $35,265 ($28,262 x 1.2478).
2016 special rate: $36,740 ($28,262 + $8,478 special rate supplement).

2017 GS rate: $28,545 (after 1.0% across-the-board increase).
2017 locality rate: $36,281 ($28,545 x 1.2710).
2017 special rate: $37,113 ($28,545 + $8,568 special rate supplement).

7. Special rate for GM employee.

Step 1: Calculate GM-13 employee's 2017 GS rate (see example 4): $89,996.

Step 2: Add percentage supplement included on special rate table. (The supplement is 33% for special rate table 0576 at GS-13.)

2017 GS rate: $89,996 (2017 GS rate from example 4).
2017 locality rate: $114,385 ($89,996 x 1.2710 (2017-DCB)).
2017 special rate: $119,695 ($89,996 x 1.33 (table 0576)).