We are hours away from a completely unwarranted shutdown of the federal government on Oct. 1 that
could cause 1.8 million workers―including hundreds of AFT members―to stop receiving their
paychecks. Among all federal workers, that would mean $5 billion in lost wages weekly until Congress
funds the government.
The Republican-controlled House, which has primary responsibility for federal funding under the
Constitution, has not yet completed its work on several major appropriations bills. As negotiations over
government funding come to a head, MAGA Republicans continue to demand cuts to essential programs
that working families rely on, including Social Security, housing, education and climate. And thousands
of federal employees, including our members who teach in the Bureau of Indian Affairs, will not get paid
until the impasse is resolved.
House Republicans, who have been too busy fighting among themselves to complete this work over the
summer, now have a plan to pass as many as half a dozen fiscal 2024 funding bills over the next week.
None of this is likely to avert a shutdown by the time the current fiscal year ends on Saturday night.
And a temporary measure to keep the government running is not in sight. There is a potential
workaround, however. It’s called a “discharge petition,” a maneuver by which a majority of the House
could bypass the speaker of the House and force a vote on keeping the government open. It’s a complex
procedure, and there’s virtually no way to get it done before Oct. 1.

Another blow to Native Americans

When people think about federal employees in the AFT, they usually think of the Federation of Indian
Service Employees, an affiliate of AFT Public Employees whose members serve Native American
communities through four federal agencies. These agencies—the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Bureau of
Indian Education, the office of the Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs and the Bureau of Trust Fund
Administration—conduct most of the public services offered to Indigenous people throughout the United
States.
This means that FISE, which represents more than 5,000 federal workers in more than 20 states, accounts
not only for public services but for a significant proportion of the income coming into Native
communities through FISE members. Disruptions like the COVID-19 pandemic or federal shutdowns
severely harm Native communities.
“Here we go again,” says FISE President Sue Parton. Of the four agencies where our union represents
employees, only education employees in the BIE would be spared. That’s because those preK-12 and
postsecondary programs are forward-funded.
However, in the BIA and two smaller agencies, members holding jobs deemed “essential” would have to
work or be furloughed without pay for the duration of the shutdown. That includes those who must drive
for hours to reach their workplaces.
Although it’s still unclear which units or positions would be considered essential, Parton says, law
enforcement employees would surely be among them: BIA police officers, corrections officers and
support personnel.

Overseas teachers worry about students

Members of the AFT’s Overseas Federation of Teachers, which represents teachers who work in Defense
Department schools in Bahrain, Italy, Spain and Turkey, are considered “mission critical” and would have
to work without pay through the crisis. They almost certainly would have to wait until funds are
appropriated and then receive backpay.
OFT President Linda Hogan says she is especially concerned about young military parents who don’t earn
a lot to begin with and who would have to go without pay during the shutdown. As always with such a
disruption, it is the children of these enlisted people who would suffer.

Public employees sit tight in Illinois

Public employees in Illinois who work under federal programs but are paid by the state government are
waiting to see whether their paychecks will be interrupted, says Matthew Emigholz, president of the
Illinois Federation of Public Employees.
In particular, the IFPE is checking on the status of meat and poultry inspectors, whose pay may be
forward-funded—which means that the programs are funded a year in advance and thus should be able to continue through a shutdown. The IFPE represents about 1,500 working people in the public sector, with more than 60 professional job titles.

Making staff shortages worse

Public sector agencies have always had to compete with the private sector on job stability and
security—meaning good benefits and stable employment—especially when they can’t compete on salary.
But with the specter of federal shutdowns looming more often than ever in recent decades, public service
advocates fear that staff shortages in vital public sector jobs will grow even worse. And that, in turn,
could lead to even more costly and less reliable privatization.
The last federal shutdown five years ago dragged on for more than a month over the winter of 2018 and
2019, imposing financial hardships on AFT members.
“Let this be the last time any elected official uses our federal public workers as political pawns,” AFT
President Randi Weingarten said at the time. “Our government services and the people who provide them
are critically important. Any attempt to hold them hostage over political ideology is wrong and
dangerous.”
And yet here we are again.
[Annette Licitra]