Trump cancels pay raise federal workers due in January

WASHINGTON » President Donald Trump informed Congress on Thursday that he is canceling pay raises due in January for most civilian federal employees, citing budget constraints. But the workers still could see a slightly smaller boost in their pay under a proposal lawmakers are considering.

Trump said he was axing a 2.1 percent across-the-board raise for most workers as well as locality pay increases averaging 25.7 percent and costing $25 billion.

“We must maintain efforts to put our nation on a fiscally sustainable course,” Trump said. The president last year signed tax cuts.

Trump cited the “significant” cost of employing federal workers as justification for denying the pay increases, and he called for federal worker pay to be based on performance and structured toward recruiting, retaining and rewarding “high-performing federal employees and those with critical skill sets.”