In the US, actual public employees (not contractors!) are generally required to be paid according to the GS payscales: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/pay-leave/salaries...

A GS-9, which is roughly a freshly-minted graduate with a Master's degree, starts at $45k/year, growing to about $60k/year (although this is also adjusted by locality). This is well below prevailing tech sector rates.