{"id":39890,"date":"2021-09-06T13:58:57","date_gmt":"2021-09-06T20:58:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.careersingovernment.com\/tools\/?p=39890"},"modified":"2021-09-06T13:59:11","modified_gmt":"2021-09-06T20:59:11","slug":"governments-equal-pay-quandary","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.careersingovernment.com\/tools\/gov-talk\/about-gov\/governments-equal-pay-quandary\/","title":{"rendered":"Government\u2019s Equal Pay Quandary"},"content":{"rendered":"

[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ custom_padding_last_edited=”on|desktop” admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”4.10.4″ background_image=”https:\/\/www.careersingovernment.com\/tools\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/1.jpeg” min_height=”629px” custom_margin=”||-6px|||” custom_padding_tablet=”50px|0|50px|0″ custom_padding_phone=”” padding_mobile=”off” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row column_structure=”1_3,2_3″ admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.25″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” custom_padding=”0px||126px|||” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”1_3″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”2_3″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_divider show_divider=”off” disabled_on=”on|on|off” _builder_version=”3.23.4″ height=”200px” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_divider][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.10.4″ text_font=”PT Sans||||” text_text_color=”#ffffff” text_font_size=”72″ text_line_height=”1.1em” background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” max_width=”620px” custom_margin=”0px||0px|” text_font_size_tablet=”52″ text_font_size_phone=”” text_font_size_last_edited=”on|tablet” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n

Government\u2019s Equal Pay Quandary<\/strong><\/p>\n

[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ custom_padding_last_edited=”on|desktop” _builder_version=”3.22″ min_height=”1978px” custom_margin=”-86px|||||” custom_padding=”11px|||||” custom_padding_tablet=”50px|0|50px|0″ custom_padding_phone=”” padding_mobile=”off” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row column_structure=”1_3,2_3″ column_padding_mobile=”on” custom_padding_last_edited=”on|tablet” admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.25″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” max_width=”1200px” custom_padding=”20px||0px|” custom_padding_tablet=”0px|||” custom_padding_phone=”” use_custom_width=”on” custom_width_px=”1200px” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”1_3″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/www.careersingovernment.com\/tools\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Screen-Shot-2020-06-06-at-9.44.14-AM.png” title_text=”Screen Shot 2020-06-06 at 9.44.14 AM” show_bottom_space=”off” align=”center” align_tablet=”center” align_phone=”” align_last_edited=”on|desktop” disabled_on=”on|on|” _builder_version=”4.4.6″ animation=”off” sticky=”on” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text disabled_on=”on|on|” _builder_version=”4.4.6″ text_font=”PT Sans|on|||” text_text_color=”#02b875″ text_font_size=”20″ text_line_height=”1.2em” header_text_color=”#000000″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” text_orientation=”center” max_width=”140px” module_alignment=”center” custom_margin=”20px||0px|” global_colors_info=”{}”]HOWARD RISHER<\/a><\/span>[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text disabled_on=”on|on|” _builder_version=”4.9.0″ text_font=”PT Serif||on||” text_text_color=”#363636″ text_font_size=”16″ text_line_height=”1.4em” background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” text_orientation=”center” max_width=”140px” module_alignment=”center” custom_margin=”10px||60px|” global_colors_info=”{}”]Howard Risher has 40 years of experience as a consultant and HR executive with clients in every sector.\u00a0He has published frequently in HR journals and websites.\u00a0 He is the author or co-author of six book and a growing list of ebooks. The most recent is\u00a0Building the Workforce Government Needs.\u00a0\u00a0He is associated with Grahall Consulting Partners.<\/i>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”2_3″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.10.4″ text_font=”PT Serif||||” text_text_color=”#363636″ text_font_size=”24″ text_line_height=”1.5em” background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” max_width=”720px” custom_margin=”0px||0px|” custom_padding=”||0px|||” text_font_size_tablet=”” text_font_size_phone=”” text_font_size_last_edited=”on|tablet” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n

Government agencies have a dilemma. They are confronted by all of the workforce problems triggered by the pandemic as well as the reality of relying on pay programs from a past era.\u00a0 Experts contend employers need to anticipate and plan for talent shortages for the foreseeable future.\u00a0 Government agencies are losing experienced workers to retirement.\u00a0 The problems filling vacancies have prompted employers in other sectors to raise salaries and offer as much as $15,000 in hiring bonuses.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The thread running through virtually all government pay programs goes back to the creation of civil service systems starting in the late 19th<\/sup> century.\u00a0 The basic model was captured in the Merit System Principles which are reflected in every government personnel system.\u00a0 The foundation of government pay systems is captured in Merit System Principle 3:<\/p>\n

\u201cEqual pay should be provided for work of equal value, with appropriate consideration of both national and local rates paid by employers in the private sector, and appropriate incentives and recognition should be provided for excellence in performance.\u201d<\/p>\n

The original model for government salary systems is the federal General Schedule, which has been essentially unchanged (except for the introduction of locality pay) since 1949.\u00a0 The underlying pay philosophy dates to decades earlier.\u00a0 The focus is internal; job classification systems assign jobs to salary ranges. In a number of state and local jurisdictions unions play a role in determining annual pay adjustments and at the federal level influence congressional actions.\u00a0 Individual pay increases are based primarily on seniority with a few exceptions, most recently Tennessee, that have shifted to pay for performance.\u00a0 Programs are significantly different than the more flexible, market-responsive systems now common in the private sector.<\/p>\n

The core commitment to \u201cwork of equal value\u201d is or was essentially the same as the standard under the Equal Pay Act of 1963, which requires that \u201cemployees of both sexes be paid equitably for work requiring equal skill, effort, and responsibility performed under similar working conditions.\u201d \u00a0Classification systems ostensibly enable HR specialists to assign jobs in hundreds of occupations to \u201ccorrect\u201d salary grades.<\/p>\n

When that program model was adopted the world of work was very different. \u00a0Workers started in entry-level jobs and stayed with the same employer through their careers. \u00a0Salary surveys did not exist. \u00a0In that era the majority of women worked only a few years, typically in office support or service jobs, before they had children.\u00a0 The women\u2019s movement starting in the 1970s with the focus on the pay gap and comparable worth triggered the ongoing concern with discrimination.<\/p>\n

It was another decade before personal computers and cell phones gained wide usage, and the acronym STEM came into use.\u00a0 It was in the 1980s that businesses began to emphasis pay for performance and the use of cash incentives below the executive level.\u00a0 Also important is the effective end of union influence in the private sector, giving employers increased pay flexibility.\u00a0 Now there are pay surveys in every sector along with websites like Glassdoor that enable employees to decide if they are paid fairly.<\/p>\n

\u2018Just Anyone With Some Basic Skills\u2019<\/strong><\/h4>\n

The pandemic and working remotely have forced employers to abandon close supervision, recognizing the impact of employee autonomy and empowering them to work independently.\u00a0 The \u2018new normal\u2019 shifts the focus to performance management, agreeing on planned results, and gives new and still unfolding emphasis on recognizing employees’ contributions.\u00a0 It also highlights the skills workers need to function independently.\u00a0 In key medical care occupations related to COVID 19 and in technical jobs central to tomorrow\u2019s workplace, primarily the STEM job families, there is an emerging recognition that government needs talent with the latest job knowledge and skills.\u00a0 It\u2019s an important development.<\/p>\n

That argument was the basis for a recent column on the GovExec.com website authored by former IRS Commissioner Charles Rossetti and his HR executive, Dr. Ronald Sanders, \u201cShrinking the Tax Gap Requires a Renewed IRS Workforce.\u201d\u00a0 Sanders served until he resigned late last year as the chair of the Federal Salary Council, which prepares an annual report on how federal compares with market rates.\u00a0 They argue the IRS needs to add \u201cspecialists in applied information technology (such as AI and machine learning); data scientists and analysts; accounting and tax professionals with expertise in specialized areas such as partnership accounting; systems architects; and cyber security experts.\u201d A key point is that government\u2019s basic hiring policy is \u201clike saying you don\u2019t want the best people you can attract, just anyone with some basic skills,\u201d they wrote. \u00a0The lack of skills, as current IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig recently testified, is the reason the IRS is often \u201coutgunned\u201d when taxes are disputed.<\/p>\n

A second recent column on GovExec highlights an element of the problem, \u201cHow \u2018Degree Discrimination\u2019 Can Affect Feds\u2019 Pay.\u201d The author, Lindy Kyzer, is correct: college degrees are a \u201cpath to higher compensation.\u201d \u201cRegardless of industry or experience, more education means more money.\u201d<\/p>\n

However, the column misses an important nuance. It\u2019s the same nuance that is too often missed in pay equity analyses. Yes, years of school and degree levels are correlated with salaries but as used in the analyses, those metrics are not useful in addressing equity concerns. Leading companies, hospital systems, and universities all look for applicants with specific skills, not years of school, and make hiring decisions based on the relevance and quality of the education and prior experience of applicants. Simply having a degree does not make an applicant attractive \u2013 but with a \u201cjust anyone\u201d staffing strategy all degrees at each level are somehow equal.<\/p>\n

In other sectors, it\u2019s the college major and the quality of the college program that is evaluated in making hiring decisions. Only fragmented data are available but it consistently confirms the expected\u2014graduates of colleges like Stanford and MIT start at significantly higher salaries than those with degrees from unknown schools. Buying an online degree would not get an applicant hired at leading companies. \u00a0That is contrary to a simplistic equal pay focus.<\/p>\n

Rossetti and Sanders are correct. The IRS, as well as other agencies that need highly skilled talent, need to be able to pay competitive salaries to attract and retain fully qualified applicants. That\u2019s true in every field and agency relevant to the nation\u2019s urgent problems. At the federal level, it was the rationale when Congress authorized the financial regulatory agencies to create separate pay systems. It was again the argument for creating DoD\u2019s National Security Personnel System after 9\/11. Competing for talent was also a prime consideration in creating the Title 38 salary program for healthcare specialists.<\/p>\n

For the IRS to be successful, the agency requires a workforce that is not only numerically larger but also fundamentally transformed from a skills standpoint. That\u2019s true for specialists in information technology, the hard sciences, economics, math, and medicine. The COVID-19 health crisis has made it all too obvious that \u201cjust anyone\u201d with basic medical credentials is not what government and the country needs.<\/p>\n

In the business world, there are companies that pay selected, critical jobs at the 90th<\/sup> percentile to attract the very best, others at the 75th<\/sup> percentile to attract better than average candidates, and where specific skills are not needed, employees are paid average salaries.\u00a0 It’s based on their business strategy.\u00a0 Arguably employers should be allowed to recognize and reward individual knowledge and skills. \u00a0But the practice conflicts with traditional equal pay thinking.<\/p>\n

A caveat is that there are many jobs that require little or no specialized skills or expertise. Every organization has them. For these jobs, degrees might prepare individuals for better lives but they add little if anything to job performance. Pay programs have to assure \u201cfair pay\u201d to all employees. The equal pay debate is likely to end up in the courts.<\/p>\n

[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.22″ background_color=”#f7f7f4″ custom_margin=”-641px|||||” custom_padding=”0px||0px|||” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ admin_label=”Section” _builder_version=”3.22″ custom_padding=”0px||0px|” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row column_structure=”2_3,1_3″ use_custom_gutter=”on” gutter_width=”1″ make_equal=”on” column_padding_mobile=”on” module_class=” et_pb_row_fullwidth” _builder_version=”3.25″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” width=”100%” width_tablet=”100%” width_phone=”” width_last_edited=”on|desktop” max_width=”100%” max_width_tablet=”100%” max_width_phone=”” max_width_last_edited=”on|desktop” custom_padding=”0px||0px|” make_fullwidth=”on” custom_width_px=”680px” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”2_3″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/www.careersingovernment.com\/tools\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/2.jpeg” title_text=”Pay,Gap,,Mind,The,Pay,Gap,Graffiti,In,Pink,,Gender” show_bottom_space=”off” force_fullwidth=”on” align_tablet=”center” align_phone=”” align_last_edited=”on|desktop” _builder_version=”4.10.4″ custom_margin=”-1px|||||” animation=”off” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_image][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_3″ _builder_version=”3.25″ background_color=”#efefe9″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/www.careersingovernment.com\/tools\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/3.jpeg” alt=”video presentation” title_text=”Gender,Equality,Concept,As,Woman,Hands,Holding,A,White,Paper” show_bottom_space=”off” force_fullwidth=”on” align_tablet=”center” align_phone=”” align_last_edited=”on|desktop” _builder_version=”4.10.4″ animation=”off” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text disabled_on=”off|off|” _builder_version=”4.10.4″ text_font=”PT Serif||||” text_text_color=”#818178″ text_font_size=”24″ text_line_height=”1.4em” background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” text_orientation=”center” module_alignment=”center” custom_margin=”5.7%|10%||10%||” custom_margin_tablet=”|10%||10%” custom_margin_phone=”” custom_margin_last_edited=”on|desktop” text_font_size_tablet=”” text_font_size_phone=”” text_font_size_last_edited=”on|phone” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n

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Building tomorrow\u2019s workforce will require a pay system that is seen as fair to highly qualified men and women. \u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.4.6″ text_font=”PT Sans|on|||” text_text_color=”#888888″ text_font_size=”12″ text_letter_spacing=”2px” text_line_height=”1.2em” background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” text_orientation=”center” module_alignment=”center” custom_margin=”20px||20%|” custom_margin_tablet=”20px|||” custom_margin_phone=”” custom_margin_last_edited=”on|tablet” global_colors_info=”{}”]HOWARD RISHER[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row use_custom_gutter=”on” gutter_width=”4″ column_padding_mobile=”on” custom_padding_last_edited=”on|tablet” admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.25″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” max_width=”1200px” custom_padding=”0px||0px|” custom_padding_tablet=”0px|||” custom_padding_phone=”” use_custom_width=”on” custom_width_px=”1200px” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.10.4″ text_font=”PT Serif||||” text_text_color=”#363636″ text_font_size=”20″ text_line_height=”1.4em” background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” custom_margin=”19px||0px|||” custom_margin_tablet=”40px||0px|” custom_margin_phone=”” custom_margin_last_edited=”on|tablet” text_font_size_tablet=”” text_font_size_phone=”” text_font_size_last_edited=”on|tablet” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n

It\u2019s Essential That Agencies Value Talent <\/strong><\/p>\n

Here is where government pay programs are too often deficient. Basing pay increases on seniority is a practice that is out of sync in any situation where highly-skilled people are employed and where high performance is needed. The business world makes pay for performance in multiple practices central to their pay strategies. Even the academics who have criticized the practice are paid for their performance (although the model for evaluating performance is unique to higher education). It\u2019s also deeply entrenched in raising and educating children. It’s important in sports, the arts, literature\u2014every sector except government.<\/p>\n

To quote from the Great Places to Work<\/em> website, \u201cEmployee recognition has long been a cornerstone of effective management. But today, as the competition for talent escalates, how organizations value their employees has become more important than ever.\u201d<\/p>\n

It’s also a proven practice where behavior needs to change. People have trouble changing established behaviors. Rewards are effective in reinforcing new, desired behavior. We do that routinely with children.<\/p>\n

During the debate preceding passage of the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978, then-Senator Joe Biden was quoted, \u201cthe most important part of civil service reform must be to motivate good employee performance.\u201d That is from a Merit Service Protection Board report where \u201crecognition of employees\u2019 performance contributions is one of the key \u2018drivers\u2019 of positive employee engagement and retention.\u201d The failure to recognize and reward performance may well explain the heavy turnover problem federal agencies have experienced among recent hires.<\/p>\n

At this point, it is clear: Transitioning to \u201cmerit pay\u201d will require a significant culture change and possibly years to accomplish. It will also require strong leadership. Tennessee was successful but the state invested three years in planning and preparing managers with training and coaching to shift successfully to pay for performance.<\/p>\n

Today, government pay programs too often are planned and administered independently of agency workforce plans and performance goals.\u00a0 It affects their value to society.<\/p>\n

Implications for Equal Pay<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Employee salaries are best understood as a composite of decisions made both by HR specialists and by managers over an employee\u2019s career. \u00a0Pay policies also affect how salaries compare internally and externally.\u00a0 Discrimination is possible at any point\u2014when jobs are classified, in the descriptions offered when vacancies are posted, in evaluating applicant credentials, in promotions, etc. The argument that applicants should not be asked for their salary history recognizes one of the potential problems.\u00a0 Bias and discrimination exist although until recently the problems were largely ignored.\u00a0 Public employers need to evaluate relevant practices in each unit and location to assure fair personnel actions.<\/p>\n

The basic equal pay test appears at one level to be straightforward\u2014equal skills, effort, responsibility, and working conditions. Originally, equal jobs were those defined by the same job description. But at the state level, the laws and court decisions are gradually expanding the interpretation.<\/p>\n

What are equal skills? Degree level is hardly a valid measure. What is equal effort? Equal responsibility? The words have appeared in job evaluation\/classification systems for decades. As used in this context, skill, effort, and responsibility are abstract, comparative ideas that are best \u201cmeasured\u201d with a series of scaled response questions. Three or four questions for each, depending on job level, provides a more credible database for comparing jobs.<\/p>\n

Research has shown that gaps in equal pay are largely explained by gender and racial segregation. Women, as well as minorities, are underrepresented in higher-level jobs. That\u2019s the classic \u201cglass ceiling\u201d problem and the evidence shows there is often discrimination at each level. \u00a0However, there are job-related factors associated with career and job choice that contribute to both segregation and differences in pay.\u00a0 For example, executive and manager positions often require long and irregular hours, and research shows historically women have declined interest in jobs that affect their role in family life.\u00a0 Those factors need to be discussed.<\/p>\n

They are also underrepresented in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine. Should social scientists be paid the same as specialists in the hard sciences? The former is more likely to be female and the latter male.\u00a0 That is central to the quandary.<\/p>\n

The demand for specialists in STEM fields and most recently cybersecurity specialists forces employers to raise salaries to compete for essential skills. \u00a0Authorizing higher salaries to attract and retain essential talent appears to be contrary to pay equity. More importantly, if budget dollars are shifted to close pay gaps, it would reduce the funds needed to remain competitive.\u00a0 That needs to be discussed.<\/p>\n

Building tomorrow\u2019s workforce will require a pay system that is seen as fair to highly qualified men and women. \u00a0It also has to enable agencies to compete for talent. The planning needs to start soon.<\/p>\n

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Building tomorrow\u2019s workforce will require a pay system that is seen as fair to highly qualified men and women. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3346,"featured_media":39895,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_cbd_carousel_blocks":"[]","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[35],"class_list":["post-39890","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-about-gov","tag-government-trends"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nGovernment\u2019s Equal Pay Quandary - Careers in Government<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Building tomorrow\u2019s workforce will require a pay system that is seen as fair to highly qualified men and women.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.careersingovernment.com\/tools\/gov-talk\/about-gov\/governments-equal-pay-quandary\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Government\u2019s Equal Pay Quandary - 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His early focus was compensation and performance management. In those years he managed the consulting practices for Mercer in Manhattan and for Watson Wyatt in Washington and Philadelphia. He began working privately in the early 1990s. He also started working with Wharton\u2019s Peter Cappelli to plan and manage conferences for the Center for Human Resources. That put him in contact with the nation\u2019s HR thought leaders which triggered his interest in the practices that are redefining and expanding HR\u2019s role. His public sector clients have included a number of federal agencies, several states from Hawaii to Vermont, counties, cities and Pennsylvania court system. In 1990 he managed the project for OPM that led to the Federal Employee Pay Comparability Act and the switch to locality pay. He has also consulted with the UN\u2019s ICSC and the OECD in Paris. He has published frequently in HR journals and websites. He is the author or co-author of six books and a growing list of ebooks. The most recent is Building the Workforce Government Needs. He is associated with Grahall Consulting Partners. He has a BA in psychology and an MBA and PhD from Wharton.","sameAs":["https:\/\/www.govexec.com\/voices\/howard-risher\/2371\/","careersingov"],"url":"https:\/\/www.careersingovernment.com\/tools\/author\/howardr\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.careersingovernment.com\/tools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39890","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.careersingovernment.com\/tools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.careersingovernment.com\/tools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.careersingovernment.com\/tools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3346"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.careersingovernment.com\/tools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=39890"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.careersingovernment.com\/tools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39890\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":39902,"href":"https:\/\/www.careersingovernment.com\/tools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39890\/revisions\/39902"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.careersingovernment.com\/tools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/39895"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.careersingovernment.com\/tools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=39890"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.careersingovernment.com\/tools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=39890"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.careersingovernment.com\/tools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=39890"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}