Security clearance salaries level off

You need an experienced IT person with a security clearance, right? So does every other federal agency as the demand for IT security and other classified work rises.

But it may be getting harder to attract these highly qualified IT personnel. For starters, salaries for government and contractor employees with valid security clearances continue to rise, but it's going up far more slowly than in the past, according to a survey by ClearanceJobs.com, an online job board for job seekers with security clearances.

In the past, an IT employee with a security clearance was a hot commodity. Today, they are finding that the clearance gives an average worker only a 2 percent increase over other workers to an average of about $74,000 in the last 18 months.

"A few years ago, we were seeing 5 [to] 7 percent per year increases--very, very high." said Evan Lesser, founder and director of the site. "A lot of candidates were receiving things like $10,000, $15,000 [or] $20,000 signing bonuses....It was very hot and heavy a couple years ago, but that's leveled off a bit.

"I think that employers are a little bit more in control now than they were in the past," he added. "In the past it was definitely a candidate's market where they could command any salary they wanted."

This is definitely an issue that every CIO and other top IT executives must keep in mind. Keep your employees with security clearances busy and happy with their work because it may not be so easy to replace them. And make sure you go out and find the best and brightest to do the work.

For more on security clearances:
- check out this Federal Times article