Is Our Military Underpaid or Overpaid?

[AirForceWife7]

As almost all of you probably know, there have been major cuts on military servicemembers' paychecks this past year & there are rumors of there being even more cuts in the near future. Military pay was even held for nearly a week a few months ago because the republicans & democrats couldn't agree on a budget. Military families need a paycheck to survive just like any one else in the world today, & times are tough due to the recession. What's your opinion? Underpaid or Overpaid?


Just a little side information:

Salary of the U.S. President - $420,000
Salary of the Speaker of the House - $223,500
Salary of the U.S. House & Senate - $174,000 (for EACH member)
Salary of U.S. Courts of Appeals Judges - $184,500
Salary of a soldier DEPLOYED in Afghanistan - $36,000

.... now we see where the cuts need to be made ...

 

[mummy3]

I dunno tbh, from what I'm told that 36k doesnt involve housing and utilities which are provided so the proper figure is likely closer to 50-60k

 

[AirForceWife7]

If you live off base, you get BAH (Basic allowance for housing) that is set to your rank. DH is only an E-3, so as you can probably conclude, we don't get that much, just enough to live from paycheck to paycheck. If you live on base .. all your BAH is taken away & they pay your utilities... everything else is up to you. Basically the higher rank you are, the more you get paid (obviously). However, this makes it very difficult for young military couples (such as DH & I) to make ends meet. What about the price that soldiers have to pay being away from their families for 15 months in Afghanistan? Some, most unfortunately, do not come home.

 

[Blah11]

I think they have it pretty much spot on. Being in the military comes with a lot of added extras too.

 

[Blah11]

If you live off base, you get BAH (Basic allowance for housing) that is set to your rank. DH is only an E-3, so as you can probably conclude, we don't get that much, just enough to live from paycheck to paycheck. If you live on base .. all your BAH is taken away & they pay your utilities... everything else is up to you. Basically the higher rank you are, the more you get paid (obviously). However, this makes it very difficult for young military couples (such as DH & I) to make ends meet. What about the price that soldiers have to pay being away from their families for 15 months in Afghanistan? Some, most unfortunately, do not come home.

But that was their choice to make. No one forced him to sign up IYKWIM?

 

[moomin_troll]

my oh was in the british army and pay over here is different.

my answer to the question is yes and no
the pay isnt great but we did get certain benifits like reduced rent (when living in army housing) we dont have to pay for water or council tax, so that saves alot of money.

and since my oh died the army have been great to me and made sure im good for money every chance they get.

but the jobs these men and women do i dont think any wage would really be good enough as they risk their lives for us and thats a amzaing thing they are doing

 

[Boony]

My OH is in the Royal Air Force (UK) and yes there are some benefits like reduced rent and reduced council tax and we dont pay water rates etc theres alot of bad points aswell. IMO the benefits dont outweigh the cons and we are looking into moving into our own house because of it.

The problem with the military pay is that its never fair for example here the admin team get paid the same as my DH. My DH is a AV tech has been trained by the raf done his Q course could be sent out of the country and he gets the same pay as the adminers? How exactly is that right?

 

[moomin_troll]

My OH is in the Royal Air Force (UK) and yes there are some benefits like reduced rent and reduced council tax and we dont pay water rates etc theres alot of bad points aswell. IMO the benefits dont outweigh the cons and we are looking into moving into our own house because of it.

The problem with the military pay is that its never fair for example here the admin team get paid the same as my DH. My DH is a AV tech has been trained by the raf done his Q course could be sent out of the country and he gets the same pay as the adminers? How exactly is that right?

i agree theres more cons then benifits. and military housing is cheap for a reason lol ive lived in some right dumps lol

 

[Boony]

My OH is in the Royal Air Force (UK) and yes there are some benefits like reduced rent and reduced council tax and we dont pay water rates etc theres alot of bad points aswell. IMO the benefits dont outweigh the cons and we are looking into moving into our own house because of it.

The problem with the military pay is that its never fair for example here the admin team get paid the same as my DH. My DH is a AV tech has been trained by the raf done his Q course could be sent out of the country and he gets the same pay as the adminers? How exactly is that right?

i agree theres more cons then benifits. and military housing is cheap for a reason lol ive lived in some right dumps lol

Just because they are cheap doesn't mean they don't have to be kept to a certain standard though. Most definitely don't meet the standards! I've heard army is worse than raf though so feel really sorry for army personel!

 

[moomin_troll]

My OH is in the Royal Air Force (UK) and yes there are some benefits like reduced rent and reduced council tax and we dont pay water rates etc theres alot of bad points aswell. IMO the benefits dont outweigh the cons and we are looking into moving into our own house because of it.

The problem with the military pay is that its never fair for example here the admin team get paid the same as my DH. My DH is a AV tech has been trained by the raf done his Q course could be sent out of the country and he gets the same pay as the adminers? How exactly is that right?

i agree theres more cons then benifits. and military housing is cheap for a reason lol ive lived in some right dumps lol

Just because they are cheap doesn't mean they don't have to be kept to a certain standard though. Most definitely don't meet the standards! I've heard army is worse than raf though so feel really sorry for army personel!

yup! its a pain in the ass when u move in and the place is a dive and yet when u move everything needs to be put to a better standard then u moved into, it costs a fortune.
my last army house was beautiful tho, brand new over in germany so i was happy to pay the extra rent for that.

its also not easy when u get postings and need to move across or to another country and u dont get ur disturbance allowence in time so need to find the money to actualy move or ur OH gets screwed.

also its hard because as a military wife it can be near impossible to find work so u have to life on that one wage and when ur OH isnt top rank and the wage isnt that great its really hard (as is any job tho)

i can see myself turning this into a rant about the army thread so ile stop lol

 

[Boony]

Haha completely agree! No one wants to employ a military wife knowing they'll be posted again in a couple of years!

Luckily my dh is quite specialist now and is unlikely to be posted but employers dont understand that.

Were having to pay 1000 pound to dhe for carpets to be replaced in our old house that were in better condition when we moved out than when we moved in its ridiculous!

Maybe there should be a military rant thread lol

 

[Pramaholic86]

The work our troops do is absolutely priceless, I'd say underpaid every time.
Yes they get benefits, housing etc, but that doesn't necessary mean a really beautiful, furnished house in a nice area! I've seen nicer council or housing association places.
It's awful that the military are facing cuts. I'd much rather see that money cut on long term jobseekers allowance etc and poured back in to public services but that's a whole other issue and will never happen!

 

[Boony]

Military houses aren't furnished. We get a cooker, staircases, fireguard and thats it.

 

[moomin_troll]

Military houses aren't furnished. We get a cooker, staircases, fireguard and thats it.

and even they dont work hahaha

 

[Eve]

Housing here at our closest base (which is one of the biggest in NA) is shit. The basements flood, the floors are held down with rusted staples in some of them, they are cold and damp and icky. Thank god they are finally redoing some of them but many had to be torn down!
Pay isn't too bad for most I guess... You can check out the salary rates at www.forces.ca

Having said that, I still feel they are underpaid. The work our soldiers do on a regular basis is essential and we should show them how much we do care.

I support our troops! One of my fav sayings is---> If you don't stand behind our troops, feel free to stand in front of them!

 

[AirForceWife7]

Housing here at our closest base (which is one of the biggest in NA) is shit. The basements flood, the floors are held down with rusted staples in some of them, they are cold and damp and icky. Thank god they are finally redoing some of them but many had to be torn down!
Pay isn't too bad for most I guess... You can check out the salary rates at www.forces.ca

Having said that, I still feel they are underpaid. The work our soldiers do on a regular basis is essential and we should show them how much we do care.

I support our troops! One of my fav sayings is---> If you don't stand behind our troops, feel free to stand in front of them!

Love that quote!

 

[AirForceWife7]

If you live off base, you get BAH (Basic allowance for housing) that is set to your rank. DH is only an E-3, so as you can probably conclude, we don't get that much, just enough to live from paycheck to paycheck. If you live on base .. all your BAH is taken away & they pay your utilities... everything else is up to you. Basically the higher rank you are, the more you get paid (obviously). However, this makes it very difficult for young military couples (such as DH & I) to make ends meet. What about the price that soldiers have to pay being away from their families for 15 months in Afghanistan? Some, most unfortunately, do not come home.

But that was their choice to make. No one forced him to sign up IYKWIM?

In some cases, no. What about the draft? & to be honest, it was his choice. It was his choice to step up as a man & a father to support his family. It was his choice to not leave my daughter & I to fend for ourselves. It is a choice, but not everyone gets deployed. My brother-in-law was infantry & had one 15 month deployment out of his three year career. His best friend, who had a different job, was in for 6 years & didn't get deployed once. It certainly is a choice, but if you were in DH's & my situation .. an unexpected pregnancy & a will to provide a decent life for a family .. then sometimes the military is the only choice. (This is to each their own, keep in mind)

 

[AirForceWife7]

but the jobs these men and women do i dont think any wage would really be good enough as they risk their lives for us and thats a amzaing thing they are doing

This exactly So sorry about your OH You are a strong woman!

 

[ahcigar1]

For someone who has 2 very very close family friends who are in the military and also as someone who works on a daily basis with the the marines I think that they are very very much underpaid and our government needs to take a step back and really look at things. Right now they are even thinking of making more cuts to our military while they continue to keep all of theirs and more. These men and women put their lives on hold essentially and risk their lives for us, and it is disgusting in my opinion of how they are treated. Yes some of them may choose the base housing option, but honestly the housing isn't that great so they end up choosing not to. One of our bachelor barracks recently was knocked down to be rebuilt, and when it was a flurry of rats came running out from all sides. And marines had just been living there, it wasn't some abandoned building. So yes housing may be free on base but often times it is not even close to being prime realastate. So many of them opt to sometimes room as many as 10 marines in one house just to make ends meet.

AirForceWife you are very right being only an E-3 rank is not very high and certainly isn't very well paid. I know many bachelors who struggle to make ends meet, I can't imagine the stress he is under to support a whole family.

Mum2J: Wonderful quote. And it is so true. I think more people in our country need to hear it.


https://omg.wthax.org/smilies/emot-salute.gif to all our troops! Job well done.

 

[AirForceWife7]

For someone who has 2 very very close family friends who are in the military and also as someone who works on a daily basis with the the marines I think that they are very very much underpaid and our government needs to take a step back and really look at things. Right now they are even thinking of making more cuts to our military while they continue to keep all of theirs and more. These men and women put their lives on hold essentially and risk their lives for us, and it is disgusting in my opinion of how they are treated. Yes some of them may choose the base housing option, but honestly the housing isn't that great so they end up choosing not to. One of our bachelor barracks recently was knocked down to be rebuilt, and when it was a flurry of rats came running out from all sides. And marines had just been living there, it wasn't some abandoned building. So yes housing may be free on base but often times it is not even close to being prime realastate. So many of them opt to sometimes room as many as 10 marines in one house just to make ends meet.

AirForceWife you are very right being only an E-3 rank is not very high and certainly isn't very well paid. I know many bachelors who struggle to make ends meet, I can't imagine the stress he is under to support a whole family.

Mum2J: Wonderful quote. And it is so true. I think more people in our country need to hear it.


https://omg.wthax.org/smilies/emot-salute.gif to all our troops! Job well done.

What I was thinking exactly! Took the words right out of my mouth!