Does anyone have any insight on how to approach civilian employment contract negotiations (e.g. bonuses, wages, etc.)?

Hi There. I'm Kevin Lloyd-Thomas, an Australian Army, Infantry, Vietnam veteran of two tours and I'd like to put you in contact with Tom Wolfe, ex US Navy. His website is http://www.out-of-uniform.com His book "Out of Uniform Your Guide to Successful Military to Civilian Career Transition" will give you a complete roadmap and will give you everything you need to answer your question and much more. You will most likely find a copy in your local library, or they could get it in for you. Better still, buy a copy because you can then always have it as a reference for the future. I bought my copy on Amazon.
Tom has over 30 years experience working with no one else but men and women leaving the military.
My link with Tom is that I will be listing his book and his Company in the resources section of my own book which will be published early in the New Year. "Beat PTSD, How a Combat Soldier Overcame Chronic Post Traumatic Stress To Live A life That Matters And How You Can Too"
SPC Greg K's comment is also worth following up, as is SSG Hank Ortega. You can never have enough information even though you are currently employed.
It could also be of value to consider letting the readers on this site know how you went.
By doing this you are giving back to the military and veteran community and your experience will definitely help others.
If you do go to Tom's website and decide to communicate with him, then please use my name.
if there's anyone else who is reading this thread and is about to go through this process or something similar, then please do the same

Wish I could help there but they have really done so much transition classes sense I have went in to this. Part of my life plus I'm not able to work, but I have heard a few people in the hiring position saying they would like military personnel cause of work ethics, but also heard the people that work in the places they don't like military going in cause it makes them look bad

I used a set of books by Martin Yate for my basic interview knowledge. I had a long career in medicine, and had to field unusual questions, and had to research out not only the area of expertise, but also the employer, and the competition.
Yate's books cover all of that, and give you lists of possible answers for those hard to answer questions (like where do you see yourself in 5 years, or tell us a bit about yourself, or worst of all, what do you expect for pay?). Since you are a senior NCO, you already flexibility is the key, and being pre-warmed up. These books do the job. Updated annually, they are the "Knock 'Em Dead" series, covering interviews, research, cover letters, and resume's.
I never failed to get a job I actually wanted, I never failed to get an invite to an interview I wanted, and I never failed to get a raise in the amount I wanted once I read and digested, and implemented the knowledge in these books.
While they are written for the business world, I was able to apply the ideas to medicine, and could apply them to any field of employment. Check them out in the library if you wish, but I predict you would soon start giving them to graduating young people as I do now.
Good luck

While everything mentioned so far is great for the US job market, it gets a bit more complex when dealing with a contract for overseas employment in pre / post / or currently in conflict environments. Salary and benefits in these types of jobs vary widely due to the type of contract the company has and it's requirements, job position and security requirements, current and expected levels of risk, method of payment and currency the company is using, and finally nationality of both the applicant and the company. Having worked both sides of this, I can tell you that you will need to really understand the situation before you can effectively negotiate the terms of your employment. One major clause that some seem to miss is the requirement that you can only discuss any terms of your contract with the HR representative.
Hope you can make it work for both you and the company.

Just be yourself and strive for better things.

I wish there had been some sort of assistance in this when I left service as it would have helped me a lot. To this day I don't know whether I cracked the code on "selling myself", I was able to work my way into the position I stayed in for over eighteen years by moving from a part-time/temporary role and impressing people with my performance. Had I been better at the interview process, I learned later, they would have hired me right off. It turned out okay, but boy - what a rough start.

I don't mean to plug a book but, I'd highly suggest reading a book called "Never Split the Difference", negotiating like your life depended on it, by Chris Voss. He's one of the preeminent practitioners and professors of negotiation skills in the world. He founded the Black Swan Group and teaches at California's Marshal School of Business and Georgetown University's McDonough School of Business. These techniques apply whether negotiating a job, getting a raise, buying a car, buying a home, negotiating rent, going golfing with the boys or getting the kids to bed. The techniques will give you an edge in ANY negotiation.....the author was an FBI hostage negotiator, and this book has some great stories on his negotiation strategies.....it's a great book and a fast read. It has helped me many times already. I ONLY WISH I READ THIS "BEFORE" I TOOK MY LAST JOB!!! I certainly could have gotten a better starting rate. NEVER GIVE THEM A SALARY NUMBER!!!! You have to plant seeds during the interviews on a range of things to get where you want to be and more!!!! Sorry for the commercial, but it is a great book!!!!