Survey: Security Clearance Is Worth 25% Pay Raise Employees with security clearances earn nearly 25% more than those with similar skills and no clearance, according to a survey by ClearanceJobs.com, an online staffing agency. The survey found the average cleared worker earned $65,684 compared with $49,650 for an uncleared counterpart. The highest-paying jobs for cleared personnel were in the Washington, DC, area. Salaries for workers with security clearances have been rising sharply since September 11, 2001, as growing demand far outnumbered the supply of people with clearances, said Evan Lesser, director of ClearanceJobs.com. Hot competition for cleared employees has led contractors to poach one another’s workforces and to offer signing bonuses to candidates. In a new twist, Mantech International is currently holding a raffle to give away a BMW to one of its new hires with a top secret/SCI clearance. The survey found the highest earners are candidates with the highest level security clearances issued by the National Security Agency, the CIA and the Department of Energy. Their annual salaries averaged between $92,500 and $102,500. The highest-paid job category was information technology management executives, with an average of $105,000. Candidates who have passed polygraph exams earn an average of $10,000 more than cleared candidates with no exam. Those who have passed a “lifestyle polygraph,” answering questions about personal habits and finances, were paid an average of $80,319. Those who have passed a lower-level “counterintelligence polygraph” earned an average of $70,168. The survey covered 700 job seekers holding security clearances. Complete results are available at www.clearancejobs.com/salary_survey.pdf.