Nov. 5, 1998
Thankful to have a job with excellent benefits
I'd like to point out a misconception that many support staff have about "higher-payed" employees at the Laboratory, specifically TSMs or TECs, and their ability to "afford" an increase in health-care premiums.
First, I want to make clear that I am not a TSM or TEC, but as a postdoc, I could be considered one of the "higher-salaried" classes at the Laboratory. At the beginning of the fiscal year, I was notified through the postdoc office that I would be receiving a salary adjustment based on market conditions, competition, etc. On average, I believe postdoctoral salaries increased by about 7 percent, or in my case, I received an extra $250 per month in wages. (As an aside, our salaries are not confidential. Anyone can look them up on the postdoc web page.) However, when I got my first month's worth of pay stubs, I was shocked to see that my NET pay was only increased to approximately $100 per month. Over 40 percent (yes, 40 percent) of my salary goes to medicare, social security, federal and state taxes. This factor does not include mandatory retirement contributions, insurance, life insurance and other miscellanous benefits. In addition, my husband and I look forward to being in a higher tax bracket for fiscal yeart 1999.
Let me tell you, it's not just the support staff who are feeling the economic crunch. I don't enjoy watching 90 percent of my raise fly out the window to Uncle Sam, higher property taxes and increased insurance premiums, but unfortunately, that's the price we have to pay. Personally, I'm very thankful to have a well-paying job with excellent benefits, even though it may cost me an additional $10 per month for health insurance.
--Elizabeth A. Bluhm