Amid fears that the US government shutdown will drag on for the third week straight, nearly 750,000 federal employees have been furloughed, while hundreds of thousands more are working without pay, the Guardian reported on October 12. According to the Union leaders, workers are being “held hostage by a political dispute” as Republicans and Democrats remain deadlocked over a spending deal.
Trump Questions Back Pay for Furloughed Workers
On Tuesday, President Donald Trump declared that furloughed employees might not receive their legally guaranteed back pay. “There are some people that don’t deserve to be taken care of, and we’ll take care of them in a different way,” Trump said, sitting in the Oval Office.
The Trump administration has, meanwhile, threatened mass firings if Democrats fail to comply demands “If this keeps going on, it’ll be substantial,” Trump told reporters. “And a lot of those jobs will never come back.” Roughly 750,000 federal workers, out of more than two million, are furloughed. Many are struggling with paychecks, bills, and uncertainty.
Trump admin begins lay-offs
On Friday, Russell Vought, Director of the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB), announced via social media that layoffs had started. Initially, around 4,000 employees were reported to have been let go. Several federal agencies began issuing notices to the employees, though exact details on the number of affected workers remained unclear.
Priscilla Novak, a furloughed researcher, said, “This is the third time I’ve been furloughed in my federal career. But this is the first time there were threats of mass firings. I’ve been checking my email every day to see if I’m fired yet.” Peter Farruggia, a CDC employee, added, “Not knowing when my next paycheck is going to get here is daunting. But at least I paid rent this month. If some bills go by the wayside, it is what it is.”
Brent Barron, president of the National Council of Field Labor Locals at the Department of Labor, said, “Some staffers don’t even know whether they’re furloughed or not, let alone if they’ll have a job much longer.” About three-quarters of the department has been furloughed, he said. “This is a petty political dispute, and the only victims are the workers and the country,” said Greg Regan, president of the AFL-CIO’s transportation trades department. He added that shutdowns are a drain on the economy and national safety.
Almost all TSA employees are required to work without pay in order to maintain airport security. Cameron Cochems, a TSA officer and union vice-president, told Guardian how the shutdown has started taking a toll on newer and lower-paid employees. “It just feels like they’re intentionally using us as political pawns, and they intentionally want to make our jobs and lives unstable,” he said, before adding, “It feels like a train coming closer every day.” Cochems added, “Once paychecks stop, workers will be focused on bills and daycare, not their jobs. This is putting everyone under extreme pressure.”
According to CNN, the government shutdown likely to stretch into a third week. Congress is still stuck, unable to agree on a funding plan, and the Senate doesn’t have any votes planned until Tuesday. Top leaders in the House said today that there’s almost no willingness for either party to reach a solution.