§5335. Periodic step-increases
(a) An employee paid on an annual basis, and occupying a permanent position within the scope of the General Schedule, who has not reached the maximum rate of pay for the grade in which his position is placed, shall be advanced in pay successively to the next higher rate within the grade at the beginning of the next pay period following the completion of-
(1) each 52 calendar weeks of service in pay rates 1, 2, and 3;
(2) each 104 calendar weeks of service in pay rates 4, 5, and 6; or
(3) each 156 calendar weeks of service in pay rates 7, 8, and 9;
subject to the following conditions:
(A) the employee did not receive an equivalent increase in pay from any cause during that period; and
(B) the work of the employee is of an acceptable level of competence as determined by the head of the agency.
(b) Under regulations prescribed by the Office of Personnel Management, the benefit of successive step-increases shall be preserved for employees whose continuous service is interrupted in the public interest by service with the armed forces or by service in essential non-Government civilian employment during a period of war or national emergency.
(c) When a determination is made under subsection (a) of this section that the work of an employee is not of an acceptable level of competence, the employee is entitled to prompt written notice of that determination and an opportunity for reconsideration of the determination within his agency under uniform procedures prescribed by the Office of Personnel Management. If the determination is affirmed on reconsideration, the employee is entitled to appeal to the Merit Systems Protection Board. If the reconsideration or appeal results in a reversal of the earlier determination, the new determination supersedes the earlier determination and is deemed to have been made as of the date of the earlier determination. The authority of the Office to prescribe procedures and the entitlement of the employee to appeal to the Board do not apply to a determination of acceptable level of competence made by the Librarian of Congress.
(d) An increase in pay granted by statute is not an equivalent increase in pay within the meaning of subsection (a) of this section.
(e) This section does not apply to the pay of an individual appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate.
(f) In computing periods of service under subsection (a) in the case of an employee who moves without a break in service of more than 3 days from a position under a nonappropriated fund instrumentality of the Department of Defense or the Coast Guard described in section 2105(c) to a position under the Department of Defense or the Coast Guard, respectively, that is subject to this subchapter, service under such instrumentality shall, under regulations prescribed by the Office, be deemed service in a position subject to this subchapter.
(
| Derivation | U.S. Code | Revised Statutes and Statutes at Large |
|---|---|---|
| (a)–(c) | 5 U.S.C. 1121. | Oct. 11, 1962,
|
| (d) | 5 U.S.C. 1123 (as applicable to 5 U.S.C. 1121). | Oct. 11, 1962,
|
In subsection (a), the words "General Schedule" are substituted for "compensation schedules fixed by this chapter" since the General Schedule is now the only compensation schedule in that chapter. The word "scheduled" is omitted since section 603 of the Act of Oct. 11, 1962,
In subsection (a)(B), the words "except a hearing examiner appointed under section 3105 of this title" are added on authority of the third sentence of former section 1010 and the fifth sentence of former section 1011, which are carried into sections 5362 and 559, respectively, and of section 1106(a) of the Act of Oct. 28, 1949, ch. 782,
Title VII (sections 701–705) of the Act of Oct. 28, 1949, ch. 782,
June 28, 1950, ch. 382, §2,
Sept. 30, 1950, ch. 1123, §§9, 10,
Oct. 24, 1951, ch. 554, §1(e),
Sept. 1, 1954, ch. 1208, §§102(a), 103(a), 112 (less applicability to §802(b)), 305(a),
June 28, 1955, ch. 189, §2(e),
Standard changes are made to conform with the definitions applicable and the style of this title as outlined in the preface to the report.
| Section of title 5 | Source (U.S. Code) | Source (Statutes at Large) |
|---|---|---|
| 5335(c) | 5 App.: 1121(c). | Oct. 29, 1965,
|
The word "officer" is omitted as included in "employee", and the word "agency" is substituted for "department" to conform to the definition in 5 U.S.C. 5331.
Editorial Notes
References in Text
The General Schedule, referred to in subsec. (a), is set out under section 5332 of this title.
Amendments
1993-Subsec. (e).
Subsecs. (f), (g).
1990-Subsec. (a)(B).
Subsec. (g).
1984-Subsec. (e).
Subsec. (f).
1979-Subsec. (a)(3)(B).
1978-Subsec. (a).
Subsec. (b).
Subsec. (c).
Subsec. (e).
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Effective Date of 1993 Amendment
Amendment by
Effective Date of 1990 Amendments
Amendment by
Amendment by
Effective Date of 1984 Amendment
Effective Date of 1979 Amendment
Amendment by
Effective Date of 1978 Amendment
Amendment by section 906(a)(2), (8) of
Transfer of Functions
For transfer of authorities, functions, personnel, and assets of the Coast Guard, including the authorities and functions of the Secretary of Transportation relating thereto, to the Department of Homeland Security, and for treatment of related references, see sections 468(b), 551(d), 552(d), and 557 of Title 6, Domestic Security, and the Department of Homeland Security Reorganization Plan of November 25, 2002, as modified, set out as a note under section 542 of Title 6.
Delay of Periodic Step Increase for Civilian Employees of the Department of Defense Based Upon Unacceptable Performance
"(a)
"(b)
Pay Increases Deemed Equivalent Increases in Pay