With no end to the federal government shutdown in sight, an estimated 750,000 workers remain furloughed, and hundreds of thousands more are working without pay. Union leaders say employees are being 'held hostage by a political dispute' as Republicans and Democrats remain deadlocked.
In the Oval Office on Tuesday, President Donald Trump suggested that furloughed employees might not receive back pay, despite a legal guarantee. 'There are some people that don’t deserve to be taken care of,' he said. The administration continues to threaten mass firings if Democrats do not yield, with Trump warning that 'a lot of those jobs will never come back.'
On Friday, White House budget director Russell Vought announced that layoffs had begun. Several federal agencies started issuing layoff notices, but details on the number of workers affected remain scarce. Employees expressed growing anxiety over their pay and job security, with some checking their emails daily to see if they have been fired.
Priscilla Novak, a furloughed federal researcher, said: 'This is the third time I’ve been furloughed, but the first time with threats of mass firings.' Peter Farruggia, a furloughed CDC employee, added: 'Not knowing when my next paycheck will arrive is daunting. At least I paid rent this month.'
A law signed by Trump in 2019, the Government Employee Fair Treatment Act, guarantees retroactive back pay for all federal workers after a shutdown. However, union leaders and watchdog groups have called on the administration to clarify that it will follow the law. 'There is no place for the administration to backpedal on its obligation to pay furloughed workers,' they wrote to the Office of Management and Budget.
Vought, an architect of the rightwing Project 2025 blueprint, previously spoke of wanting to put officials 'through trauma' to reduce the capacity of the federal government. As the shutdown continues, officials have been ordered to prepare for further cuts beyond the 300,000 federal employees already set to be removed by the end of the year.
