Worth it to leave federal employment tech work for defense contracting tech work?
Currently a GS-14 at Fort Meade working on full stack software engineering stuff. I have other software experiencing including data engineering, AI integration etc. 10 years of experience since graduating college.
I have TS clearance and make around 150k. However, I feel like my skillset demands more pay. The problem is the GS scale lags behind private sector pay for tech and is slow to catch up. I don't even know if it will beat inflation in the future.
I would not leave the job security and benefits of federal employment unless I get at least 250k as a defense contractor. I imagine I would work within or around DC or in northern virginia, and would need this salary to afford a house there.
Tell me, how quick can I get a job in this market? How secure is it? How are pay and benefits? And do they offer hybrid schedule?
Note, I would like to stay in defense contracting software tech with a TS/SCI foe the job security; it is probably closest to federal employee job security.