Federal agencies have a Friday (October 15) deadline for deciding whether employees currently under
special rate designations should keep that status, a decision driven largely by their experiences in
recruiting and retaining those employees. The agencies will report to the Office of Personnel
Management, which will issue guidance later. The large majority of special rate employees keep that
status from year to year. Special rate employees typically get the across-the-board component of the
annual general schedule raise and also get the higher of either their special rate adjustment or
locality pay.
