The APS pay scale defines the salary of everyone working for the federal government. Your pay is determined by your level. Your level is (mostly) determined by how senior your are in the Organisational Chart, and the OrgChart basically shows how many people work under you. So the only way to earn more is to manage more people. This results in people who are highly skilled in a subject matter doing middle-management instead, because that’s what happens when you get promoted. It simply reinforces the Peter Principle, resulting in a hierarchy where no one is doing the job they are best suited to. In the APS, you can’t get to $100k without becoming a manager.

https://www.apsc.gov.au/remuneration-reports/australian-public-service-remuneration-report-2021/chapter-3-base-salary

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_principle

Private companies don’t do that. If you’re very good at something, they can pay you well for it, they won’t force you to take on management just to get a raise. It means people can do what they’re best at, and you can attract and retain the best people to fill the roles you need.

I’ve worked with engineers on $200k+ working under a supervisor on $110k, because the engineer is highly skilled in a particular technology, while the supervisor was a graduate who got their MBA a couple of years after graduating and are working their way up the corporate ladder.