Audrey Murray is losing sleep over the government shutdown that could soon derail her paychecks.
Murray, 65, has worked as a cleaner at the Smithsonian Museum of American History for nearly three decades. Now she is among the hundreds of thousands of federal government contractors whose livelihoods are being threatened by the political dysfunction in Washington, DC.
“It’s so sad that they think they can play with people’s lives,” Murray told CNN while fighting back tears. “Stop this. Stop messing with people. We have families who depend on us.”
Unlike federal employees, contractors typically don’t receive backpay when the government reopens from a shutdown. Low-wage service workers, including cleaners, janitors, security guards, cafeteria workers and other staffers who keep buildings operating, are often out of luck.
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During a shutdown, federal employees are not paid — even if they are deemed essential — and are required to report to work. Essential workers include those at the Transportation Security Administration who screen passengers and baggage at airports.
However, those federal workers get backpay once the lapse in funding is over. But there is no such obligation for government contract workers, according to legal experts.
“Not only are they not guaranteed backpay, they rarely — if ever — get it,” said Judy Conti, government affairs director at the National Employment Law Project (NELP), a nonprofit advocating for an inclusive economy and worker rights.
The problem is that contractors are paid by the federal government for the services they provide, whether that’s security work, meal prep or cleaning office buildings. But if there are no services because buildings are shut down, the contractor doesn’t get paid.
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Read the full story at cnn.com.
