Trump promised that workers would get the back pay they missed during his 35-day government shutdown “very quickly.” But two weeks after the shutdown ended, thousands of workers are still struggling to get by while waiting for the paychecks they’re owed.
Trump promised workers they would get their back pay “very quickly,” and the White House said it would happen by February 1.
Mulvaney, 1/27/19: “There’s a couple different payroll providers in the federal government and how an employee gets paid or which payroll provider- provider covers their agency will dictate how long it takes. Some of them could be early this week. Some of them may be later this week but we hope that by the end of this week all of the back pay will be made up and of course the next payroll will go out on time.”
Trump: “I will make sure that all employees receive their back pay very quickly, or as soon as possible. It’ll happen fast.”
Two weeks after the Trump Shutdown ended, thousands of federal workers have still not been paid or only received a portion of what they’re owed.
Associated Press: “Nearly two weeks after the end of the longest government shutdown in U.S history, many federal workers still have not received their back pay or have only gotten a fraction of what they are owed as government agencies struggle with payroll glitches and other delays. And even as they scramble to catch up on unpaid bills and to repay unemployment benefits, the prospect of another shutdown looms next week.”
Washington Post: “They are among thousands of employees who have experienced delays or anomalies with paychecks at the federal agencies that went dark. Many say they initially received half of what they were owed after working without pay or being furloughed. Others were stunned by what appeared to be excessive tax withholding.”
Federal workers continue to struggle to get by while they wait for their back pay and cope with late fees and unpaid bills.
“President Trump stood in the Rose Garden at the end of the shutdown and said, ‘We will make sure that you guys are paid immediately.’ … And here it is, it’s almost two weeks later.” – Federal worker
“I mean what I got paid, I can only cover my mortgage, for one month. They also hit us with double deductions on that paycheck. So what would have been 120 hours worth of pay, is basically back down to what we would originally get for one paycheck. Because almost 50 percent of my check is gone.” – Federal worker
“When I saw that $250 I thought, ‘What in the world is this? Where’s the rest of my money?’” – Federal worker
“And getting paid later—don’t get me wrong, it’s helpful and it’s the right thing to do—but getting paid later puts me in a bad spot. For every $100 I get late, I’m $110 in debt.” – Federal worker