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Health & Fitness

Federal Workers Get A Promise To EVENTUALLY Get Paid As The HOUSE Goes Into Recess

Good and Bad News for Federal Workers

Today in the U.S. House, Representatives voted to provide back pay to all furloughed federal employees when the shutdown ends.  The Hill broke the news; “members approved the Federal Employee Retroactive Pay Fairness Act, H.R. 3223, in a 407-0 vote.”

This is great news for furloughed federal workers who can rest a little easier knowing that eventually they will get their pay back.

NH Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter was a co-sponsor of the bill.  Porter’s district includes the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard where over 4000 workers were forced into furlough by the shutdown.  These are the same DOD workers were forced to take unpaid furlough days last year due to the ‘Sequester’ cuts.

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“I was proud to cosponsor this legislation to ensure workers are not unfairly punished due to Washington gridlock, and I’m glad the House passed it,” Shea-Porter said. “But this bill does not address the urgent need for Congress to do its job and reopen the full federal government. It’s time to put aside partisan politics and allow a vote on a clean funding bill that has bipartisan support and would put people back to work.”

NH Congresswoman Annie Kuster sent out this statement shortly after the vote.

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“Hard working federal employees shouldn’t lose their pay because of gridlock in Congress, and this common sense bill will ensure that they don’t. Now it’s time for Speaker Boehner to let us vote on a bill to fully end the shutdown and restore services for New Hampshire families.”

This bill pays workers what is owed to them only AFTER the government reopens.  The question is when will the shutdown end?  The House has moved into recess to allow members to go home for the weekend.

Some Representatives in the House we not happy with this decision to go into recess.  Rep Shea-Porter spoke out against the recess!  In a short one-minute speech on the House floor, Shea-Porter said:

“Now I find out that we [the House of Representatives] are going home. Speaker Boehner has decided that Congress will go home tomorrow. How can we possibly go home? 

“There are people [in New Hampshire] who are not being paid. People here who are not being paid; police were not paid who work here every day. Across this country people are not receiving what they paid for, and we’re going home? 

“I’m embarrassed about this. We should stay here. And if they can’t agree to accept the fact that they lost the vote on the health care law, again and again, if they can’t agree to that, can they at least agree to work on jobs? There’s plenty of work to do in this country. And we have no right to go home until we get this job done.”

This is what every single legislator in Washington should be saying until they reopen the government.  Even though they will be eventually get paid that could mean weeks or months without a paycheck.  What are they supposed to eat until the government reopens?


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