Two federal workers and their union have filed a lawsuit against the government over the wages they’re losing during Donald Trump’s shutdown. Justin Tarovisky and Grayson Sharp work in the Federal Bureau of Prisons, and they’re still on the job as essential employees during the shutdown:
“They’re working a dangerous job, they’re critically understaffed, and now, they don’t know when they’ll next get paid,” [attorney Heidi Burakiewicz] said, adding that “essential” employees will continue incurring the costs of commuting to work, such as gas and child care. Without knowing how long the shutdown will last, many workers may be forced to make challenging choices.
"They may be paycheck to paycheck, have cellphone bills, mortgages. ... It’s unacceptable for any employer, but especially for the U.S. government,” Burakiewicz contended.
A similar lawsuit by the same attorney was successful during the 2013 shutdown … but 25,000 federal workers are still waiting for the damages they’re entitled to, after an appeals process that ended just last year.
Workers “deserve the decency of knowing when their next paycheck is coming and that they will be paid for their work,” said J. David Cox, the president of the American Federation of Government Employees, calling it “nothing short of inhumane” to force people to work without knowing when they’ll be paid.