Yah; it's the 401K in the pvt sector, but employers typically put money into it. You gotta look at the big picture to see if this is fair or not. TOTAL compensation. Federal workers get a little less, on average, than pvt sector workers with the same experience and education. They probably work fewer hours on average though, so I think it evens out. I see a ton of govt workers, federal though local, leave for higher paying jobs in the pvt sector.
The people typically complaining about lavish govt paychecks and/or benefits typically don't want a govt job. Reason is that it doesn't pay enough for them.