With the backdrop of the shutdown and federal workers going unpaid, the New York Times published a backgrounder last week on federal compensation.

As a general matter, governments are poorly managed compared to businesses in competitive markets.

Federal employee Jason Ullner portrays federal workers as victims in today’s Washington Post.

As part of the payroll tax bill on Friday, Congress voted to tweak federal worker benefits. New federal hires will be required to make an additional contribution to their pension plans. While just a small change, federal worker unions railed against the bill as if were armageddon.

CBO has released a study comparing the wages and benefits of private sector and federal non-military workers. The study uses statistical techniques to make comparisons with adjustments for education level, experience, and other factors.