Top Secret

For IT professionals carrying security clearances, 2007 has the makings of a very good year. According to two recent studies, candidates with clearances can earn as much as 24 percent more than their "uncleared" counterparts, and call the shots in terms of job opportunities.

But for the government solution providers that have to employ cleared staffers to stay competitive, government-agency requirements drain resources and force a trade-off to meet the demand for this valuable labor.

ClearanceJobs.com surveyed more than 2,175 job seekers with active or current U.S. security clearances between Jan. 21 and Sept. 30, and found that salaries for candidates with "Confidential" clearances increased more than 13 percent in the third quarter of 2006. Salaries for those with "Secret" clearances remained flat, while those with "Top Secret" clearances increased about 2 percent.

Likewise, the Human Resource Association of the National Capital Area and the Professional Services Council (PSC) surveyed 90 employers in the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia, and found that 47 percent of respondents provide additional compensation to employees with security clearances. That additional compensation is provided through increased base pay--from 3 percent for those with Confidential clearances to 23 percent for those with Top Secret clearances--or sign-on bonuses of $4,000 to $11,400.

"As the process government uses to award clearances has ebbed and flowed, the salary has been impacted," says Alan Chvotkin, PSC's senior vice president and counsel. "Then, when the Department of Defense (DoD) stopped the clearance process, there was uncertainty with anyone being hired. Salaries spiked."

In April 2006, the Defense Security Service notified defense contractors that it was suspending new personnel security-clearance requests and reinvestigations because of the overwhelming volume of applications and funding constraints. Within a few months, acceptance of applications had again resumed, though the backlog clogged the system.

Even as the government tries to improve the security-clearance process, agencies struggle with programs that demand more cleared workers than ever, and contractors wait with valuable employees on the bench.

"It's been a bit of a roller coaster, to say the least," says Deborah Tillman, facility security officer at Presidio. The Greenbelt, Md.-based systems integrator hasn't had a single employee security clearance approved in about a year. "The process starts, then stops, then starts again, and all the while with the systems used going through different upgrades that impact our applications. When [industry is] not able to fulfill the requirements of a contract, the customer doesn't get its needs met. I'd imagine some customers have had to compromise to a point, maybe decreasing the workload so the most important tasks can be assigned."

NEXT: Little wonder that IT professionals with security clearances are commanding higher paychecks.