Washington, Oct 8: US President Donald Trump stated that some furloughed federal employees may not receive back pay once the government reopens, amid ongoing disputes over the federal shutdown.
Speaking from the White House Oval Office, Trump said, “It depends on who we’re talking about… But for the most part, we’re going to take care of our people. There are some people that really don’t deserve to be taken care of, and we will take care of them in a different way.” He did not specify which employees might be excluded from compensation.
The remarks follow a draft White House memo reported by Axios, indicating that furloughed federal workers are not guaranteed pay for the period of forced leave during the shutdown. Roughly 750,000 federal workers are expected to be furloughed, according to the Congressional Budget Office, while essential employees including air traffic controllers and law enforcement officers continue to work without pay.
Trump continued to blame Democrats for the impasse, saying, “The Democrats have put a lot of people in great risk and jeopardy.” Democratic leaders, in turn, blamed Republicans, with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer stating, “The Republicans shut down the government instead of fixing health care for Americans across this country.”
Following the 35 day government shutdown in 2018–19, Trump had signed a law guaranteeing back pay for federal employees affected by future shutdowns. Previously, Congress routinely approved back pay once a funding bill reopened the government.
Meanwhile, US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned that the shutdown is putting additional pressure on already overworked air traffic controllers, highlighting operational challenges caused by the funding lapse.