OP here. I am currently a 12 and wanted to know if I should start applying to other agencies to get a 13 or at least to agencies where the career ladder would give me a reasonable likelihood of ascending to a 14 over time.

Thank you all for your feedback thus far.

GS 11 at Dept of VA - and I had already completed GS 12 several years prior (so I ended up being demoted essentially).

Military Officers in the super professions get additional pay in addition to their rank.

Anonymous wrote:Do Government lawyers get some type of supplement in addition to thier base salary?

Like what?

A GS-14 lawyer DC gets the same pay as a GS-14 anybody else in DC: base salary plus locality. Performance bonuses vary by agency and division, but in my experience they're neither common nor large, and they follow the same rules as bonuses for non-lawyers.

Anonymous wrote:Do Government lawyers get some type of supplement in addition to thier base salary?

yeah, it's called a furlough

Do Government lawyers get some type of supplement in addition to thier base salary?

pp here ... 19:00 is exactly right, the grade depends on the job description, not on you or your experience.

and agencies are getting much tighter about applying the OPM standards such that it will be much harder to demonstrate a GS-15 staff attorney position qualification (there has been "grade creep" over the past 20 yrs.).

There are non managerial GS-15 attorneys at EPA, though it will be rare for anyone not already a national expert to get that in the future.

For a 5 yr. attorney, I would expect a GS-13. Coming in now, you're not going to get a GS-15 without being a supervisor, and of course some of the best lawyers (substantively) prove year after year that they make some of the very worst supervisors you will ever see!

In my agency at least it depends on the job, not on you. If you apply for a GS-13 jposting, you'll be a 13. You don't get to negotiate that based on your experience (exceptions can be made, but it isn't the norm). So if you think your experience/skills make you a strong candidate for a 14 position, apply for it. If you don't want to be a 13, be prepared to have to say 'No' should an offer come.

After seven years if big law, I came in at 13, but moved to 14 in a year. My agency doesn't have non-managerial 15s with less than 20 years experience, and my work/life balance is not currently conducive to a management position (small child, and I love the flexibility I have).

I agree with PPs who say that a 13 is most likely when coming from outside. It's really hard -- though not impossible, as one PP demonstrates -- to have directly transferable government experience without working for the government. FWIW, though, it's common in my office to bring people in (whether from outside or from elsewhere in government) to a 13/14 job as a 13 and then make them a 14 the next year; I did this myself after 4 years directly relevant private experience. So based on that, I would suggest you look for a job with promotion potential, rather than worrying about your starting level.

We also have non-supervisory 15 positions (I'm not at DOJ) but I don't think I've ever seen someone hired directly from the outside for those. I'm sure it's happened to somebody somewhere, but I also believe that when it happens, it happens to people with more than 5 years experience.

Good luck!

Anonymous wrote:. Only at DOJ can a non managerial attorney be a 15. t.

nope--- there are non managerial 15's elsewhere in govt as well. I am one!

With 5 years in terms of whether you are a 13 or a 14-- if you are coming from outside I would think 13 is more likely.

I came in after 6 years at a law firm with 100% totally relevant/trasnferable experience as a 14. I think if your experience is relevant, you should sell that in negotiations. I was told that my grade/step was consistent with other attorneys in the office with the same amount of experience.

My understanding is that non-managerial attorneys in departments other than DOJ can be a 12, 13, or 14. Only at DOJ can a non managerial attorney be a 15. If you have 5 years experience, I do think you would be at least a 13, depending on the department.

What is a typical GS level for this amount of experience? I heard from someone that attorneys typically are at a GS level of
GS-13 or above. Just wondering if I need to start aggressively applying to obtain a higher GS level.