Benefits, Leave and Compensation

ASPR offers a diverse set of benefits to cover many aspects of your life. As a federal employee, you are able to enroll in health, life, dental, and vision insurance and apply for long term care insurance.

Health Insurance

Federal employees, retirees and their survivors enjoy the widest selection of health plans in the country. ASPR employees are eligible to enroll in the Federal Employee Health Benefits (FEHB) Program. FEHB offers a wide variety of health plans from which to choose, including some that offer Health Savings Accounts. There a wide range of programs, which range from high deductible plans to full service needs. These programs offer coverage for individuals or families.

Interested in learning more? Take a few minutes to compare plans and find coverage that is right for you!

Dental and Vision Insurance

The Federal Employees Dental and Vision Insurance Program (FEDVIP)is a voluntary program provides supplemental dental and vision benefits to federal civilian employees.

The FEDVIP allows dental and vision insurance to be purchased on a group basis, which means competitive premiums and no pre-existing condition limitations.

Federal Long-term Care Insurance

The Federal Long Term Care Insurance Program (FLTCIP) offers insurance to eligible employees to help pay for long term care services, such as home care or care in a nursing home or assisted living facility.

Flexible Spending Accounts

The Federal Flexible Spending Account (FSAFEDS) allows federal employees to pay for eligible out-of-pocket medical, dental, vision and dependent care expenses with pre-tax dollars. By using pre-tax dollars to pay for eligible health care and dependent care expenses, an FSA gives you an immediate discount on these expenses that equals the taxes you would otherwise pay on that money.

How much could you save with a flexible spending account? Find out with the flexible spending account savings calculator.

Full-time employees accrue annual leave based on the length of their tenure with the government. The following chart details the annual leave accrual rate per pay period.

Prior experience may count toward the accrual rate that new employees receive. Employees are allowed to carry over 240 hours (30 days) each leave year; any hours over 240 at the end of the payroll year will be forfeited.

Annual leave is paid as a lump sum if you leave the government; you may be required to pay back some or all of this if you return to federal service within certain time frames.

Sick Leave

Sick Leave accrues at a rate of four hours per pay period for full time employees, or 13 workdays per year. Sick leave doesn’t expire and continues to accrue throughout your career.

If you leave the government and return to federal service later, your previous sick leave balance can be restored to your account. Sick leave can be used for personal illness, care of sick family members, adoption, and medical appointments.

ASPR employees receive other leave benefits, including parental leave, bereavement leave, emergency leave, and leave under the Family Medical Leave Act. Visit OPM Pay and Leave to find out more about federal leave types.

Paid Holidays

Federal employees receive 10 paid holidays every year:

FedStrive is an integrated health, wellness, and work-life balance program. FedStrive is a service offered by the Federal Occupational Health that is designed to help employees improve their workplace practices, enhance wellness, be more fit, and obtain health information.

FedStrive offers a fitness center, onsite clinical services, Employee Assistance Program, and a robust wellness and health promotion services. The program is available at ASPR headquarters in Washington, DC.

Most jobs available at ASPR are compensated using the General Schedule (GS) pay system.

Salary Range and Promotions

When you apply for a position on USAJobs.gov, the GS level and salary range will be listed at the top of the job announcement. The salary range corresponds to compensation at that GS level or range of levels.

The GS pay scale has 15 levels or grades, and each level has 10 steps. Within a GS level, an employee’s pay increases in defined amounts known as steps. Step increases are typically awarded at standard intervals throughout an employee’s career, but they are not automatic. Pay increases to the next step are based on the years of experience in your position and acceptable performance.

GS Step	Standard Period to Step Increase*
1-4	52 Weeks
5-7	104 Weeks
8-10	156 Weeks

Step increases for exceptional performance may be awarded during a performance review without restarting the waiting period.

GS pay schedules are updated annually. To learn more, see the GS Pay Tables.

Locality Pay

Federal employees who work in certain cities or states are eligible for locality pay. To find out if you are applying for a job in one of these areas, see the locality pay area definitions.

Additional Compensation

In addition to basic pay, employees may receive overtime compensation, bonuses, and some allowances based on their performance.

The Federal Employees' Group Life Insurance (FEGLI) Program is the largest group life insurance program in the world, covering more than 4 million Federal employees and retirees, as well as many of their family members.

In most cases, if you are a new Federal employee, you are automatically covered by Basic life insurance and your payroll office deducts premiums from your paycheck unless you waive the coverage.

To learn more about coverage options, see the federal insurance calculator.