A shutdown that would halt pay for military families and government workers comes at a particularly precarious time for many households that are already struggling financially.

With six kids under the age of 15 to support, Stephen Booth, a police officer for the Air Force in Kansas, doesn’t have room in his budget for a missed paycheck.

But like millions of other government employees across the country, Booth is bracing for his pay to stop indefinitely at the end of the month as Congress careers toward a government shutdown.

House Republicans left Thursday unable to reach a compromise within their ranks over a new budget, including funds for the Defense Department, with a handful of conservative holdouts demanding additional spending cuts. Unless Congress acts, the federal government will not be able to pay its 4 million employees after Sept. 30.

  • JokeDeity@lemm.ee
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    1 year ago

    Every one of those workers makes at least twice what I do working far less hard. I think I’ll sleep fine knowing this.

    • StereoTrespasser@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      You’ve fallen hook, line, and sinker for the conservative propaganda that all government workers are lazy. That’s one excuse they promote to de-fund programs and entire departments so they can siphon the money off to private contractors to do the same work at double the rate.

    • ZetaLightning94@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      Not really true… the current issue is that contractors are paying damn near double for fed employees. Retention is a hugh deal in the gov.

        • ZetaLightning94@lemmy.world
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          1 year ago

          Federal employees are very underpaid for their positions and skill sets as compared to those who are employed privately. Everyone I know who works in the government are literally living paycheck to paycheck, but stay because of the job security. Federal employees arent the problem to say “fuck them” its those with bloated wallets who run the government that are the problem.

            • ZetaLightning94@lemmy.world
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              1 year ago

              So basically you have no idea what goes on in the government, but think that feds do nothing all day because someone said all feds are lazy? Its not the feds fault that you have a dead end job making minimum wage…

                • ZetaLightning94@lemmy.world
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                  1 year ago

                  Again you obviously dont know what goes on in the gov. I know people who work 16 hour days 5 days week and still cant put food on the table because of the poor pay. On a side note, do you need a hug?