Pup7

But the back end costs for that pay are not borne by the Fed when the work is contracted. The Fed is not responsible for health care, workman's comp, life insurance, dependent health insurance, et cetera, when the employee is not directly beneath the Fed. The employee gets that from his or her employer: the contract agency.

The taxpayer doesn't pay it even though the employee's salary is the same because the benefit cost is borne by the contracting agency. Even if the contract employee "makes more" on paper than a comparable GS employee, the Feds actually PAY LESS out of pocket because all the ancillary costs are not their responsibility. Even the costs of the background check are reimbursed to the Feds by the contract agency, and the agency pays back whatever monetary amount the Fed puts on the cost of filing paperwork (that little codicil on Federal documents that sometimes says "the estimated cost of providing this information is X amount"). The Fed ultimately pays less. Trust me.