After the longest government shutdown in U.S. history, federal employees are set to begin receiving paychecks again. This news brings relief to workers who had been without pay for over a month.
Pamela Ward, a Social Security worker in Birmingham, shared that she and her colleagues are expecting a partial paycheck on Monday, following more than 30 days of no pay.
“We deserve to be paid, especially after the struggles we’ve endured,” Ward said.
As a federal worker, Ward explained that her job requires her to serve the American people regardless of the situation. However, she admitted that working through the 43-day shutdown had been a significant challenge.
“It’s hard to accept that we don’t deserve to get paid or that we should stop working just because it’s difficult. Hearing that is painful,” she said.
Ward mentioned that she and thousands of other federal employees expect to receive their first full paycheck by the following Friday.
“We’ll finally be able to catch up on what we’ve missed. Some of us were fortunate to have help from others, but many had to manage without that support,” Ward explained.
While learning that the shutdown is ending has provided some relief, Ward expressed concern that the temporary continuation of funding could lead to another shutdown in the future.
“I’m not sure if the 43 days were worth it in the end, especially if we don’t have a long-term budget solution to prevent this from happening again,” she said.
Ward is taking a cautious approach and plans to prepare in case another shutdown occurs at the start of the next year.
