Federal employee bonuses

[Anonymous]

Do I feel morally superior because I no longer represent asbestos manufacturers in exchange for a lot of money? No, not morally superior because I understand why people do it, but I sure as heck can sleep better at night. That said, I don’t understand why the trade off for being proud of the work I do is a salary that is less than a first year associate’s and a minuscule bonus. So no, I don’t expect anyone to get it the violin, but I do expect that other lawyers might understand why a litigator with 20+ years of experience might be just a little frustrated by $350.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t want to join the private sector, because I like and believe in the work, and don’t particularly want to sell my soul. I realize the trade offs I have made and most days am fine with them (for example, I am not worried about being fired because I failed to meet my billable hours). But for those who grouse about lazy, useless federal employees, don’t bonuses seem like a reasonable way to compensate high performers?

So, you want the luxury of not billing 2000 hours a year, having a better quality of life and government benefits, and feeling morally superior but you're grousing about a $350 bonus? If you're that offended, donate it to charity. I don't think many people are going to pull out a violin for a fed that has to be making six figures.

I know many attorneys who have fled BigLaw for government positions, but few have mentioned soul selling, and more have left for better quality of life (particularly after they have kids) and the opportunity to do more substantive quality work - they do BigLaw long enough to pay off loans ans maybe buy a house but quickly realize they don't want to be a partner and leave after year 5 or 6, at the latest. But they know they're giving up the five-figure bonuses along with 11:30 p.m. attempts to pry the filing out of the signing partner's hands in order to hit the midnight deadline or being sent halfway across the country on a moment's notice because the FBI just raided client headquarters.

I don’t think it’s a luxury not to bill 2000+ hours (I was at 2100 so far). It’s crazy that society has accepted that model.