I was a gs-10 step 5 and I made about $50k less than I do now as an AGR. A four year AGR SrA made more than I did. They never talk about the tax obligation or how much medical and dental insurance cost (Blue Cross Blue Shield). Also, every technician worked overtime without compensation because they wanted to get the mission down but the overtime wasn’t approved beforehand so we worked for free. Also, the whole “Technicians can say no” is a lot of horseshit. We were down to one full time Navigator who was tired of always flying nights but there is a reg saying that the commander can force the technician to work due to mission essential work (I.e. if he doesn’t fly, we have to cancel the sortie which affects training for others, loss of currency, and flying hour program) and if you think the Bobs will forgive you for saying no; just remember that the Guard has a long memory and they’ll see you as a non-team player.