Union to Congress: End Shutdown, Pay Workers Now
Current and former federal workers and members of the American Federation of Government Employees protest outside the John D. Dingell Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Detroit earlier this year. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
The largest union representing federal workers is pressing Congress to end the government shutdown immediately, calling it an “avoidable crisis” that has left hundreds of thousands of families struggling financially. The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), which represents roughly 820,000 federal and Washington, D.C., government workers, issued a strong statement Monday, criticizing both parties for failing to resolve the impasse as the shutdown enters its fourth week, according to Politico.
AFGE President Everett Kelley said the time for political games has passed and urged lawmakers to pass a “clean continuing resolution” to restore funding without any additional conditions.
“No half measures, and no gamesmanship,” Kelley said. “Put every single federal worker back on the job with full back pay—today.” He added that lawmakers should focus on solving problems rather than assigning blame. “When the folks who serve this country are standing in line at food banks after missing a second paycheck because of this shutdown, they aren’t looking for partisan spin,” he said. “They’re looking for the wages they earned. The fact that they’re being cheated out of it is a national disgrace.”
The union has filed multiple lawsuits against the Trump administration, including over mass layoffs. While federal workers are expected to receive back pay once the government reopens, the administration has questioned the legal basis for that guarantee. According to the Bipartisan Policy Center, at least 670,000 federal employees have been furloughed, with another 730,000 working without pay. The union, which has members in nearly every government agency, said it would support the House-passed stopgap funding resolution—which has failed 12 times in the Senate and expires Nov. 21—or a longer-term spending bill, NBC News reports.
Sources told Politico that bipartisan talks in the Senate over how to ensure both federal employees and active-duty military are paid continued Monday. A recent Republican-led proposal to pay only select workers failed, while Democrats are pushing for broader protections.
“The national interest requires Congress to act immediately to bring every federal employee back to work, pay them for the work they’ve already done—or been locked out from doing—and continue having the debates and disagreements that are the hallmark of a strong democracy, without punishing the people who keep our nation running,” Kelley said.
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