Recruitment Incentive Program

The Federal Employees Pay Comparability Act of 1990 (FEPCA) authorizes an agency to pay a recruitment bonus of up to 25 percent of basic annual pay to a newly appointed employee when, in the absence of such a bonus, difficulty would be encountered in filling the position with a highly qualified candidate.

A newly appointed employee is defined as the first appointment, regardless of tenure, as an employee of the Federal Government; or an appointment as an employee of the Federal Government following a break in service of at least 90 days from the candidate' s last period of Federal employment, other than;

1. Employment under the Student Educational Employment Program;
2. Employment as a law clerk trainee;
3. Employment while a student during school vacations under a short -term temporary appointing authority;
4. Employment under a provisional appointment, if the new appointment is permanent and immediately follows the provisional appointment; or
5. Employment under a temporary appointment that is neither full -time nor the principal employment of the candidate.

Basic pay is defined as the rate of pay fixed by law or administrative action for the position to which an employee is being assigned, before deductions and exclusive of additional pay of any kind, such as premium pay, interim geographic adjustments, locality pay, etc. In addition, a recruitment bonus is not considered basic pay for any purpose and is subject to the annual aggregate pay limitation ( i. e., an employee' s total annual compensation, including premium pay, bonuses, awards, etc., may not exceed Executive Level 1).

These bonuses may only be paid to the extent that the Service has funds available for this purpose. A recruitment incentive may be any percentage up to 25% of basic annual pay and is paid as a lump sum within two pay periods of the effective date. The amount of the incentive is determined by the recommending official, which is based on the following set of criteria applicable to a particular position and candidate: role and impact of candidate (e.g., technical expertise in an important program field); nature and extent of candidate’s past training and experience; average salary reported for comparable private sector positions; length of the proposed service agreement; and other comparable criteria bearing on the proposed amount of the incentive. A specific term of employment (minimum of 12 months) with the USSS is required. The recommending official determines the exact length of continued service agreement based on the above listed criteria.

For the Foreign Language Recruitment Incentive, the employee must remain in their position with the USSS for a minimum of 18 months. A Foreign Language Recruitment Incentive requires that the candidate must be scheduled for testing and meet the criteria for the S-3 language skill or higher to receive consideration for a recruitment incentive. The recruitment incentive will be 25% of basic annual pay and based upon the grade level established upon being hired, which will be paid as a lump sum upon successful completion of all required training and graduation.

Approval for a recruitment incentive is made on a case-by-case basis and must be based on a written determination that without paying an incentive the USSS would have difficulty filling the job with a highly qualified candidate. The appropriate recommending official is the AD/Chief, and the Deputy Director is the approving official for all USSS recruitment incentives, including SES positions.