Federal government employees working without pay during the ongoing partial shutdown should be allowed to telework or work flexible schedules, according to the agency responsible for public servants.
The Office of Personnel Management on Wednesday recommended that federal workers should be permitted to telework, given the option to work a flexible schedule, and have the opportunity to take time off for personal reasons.
“While the shutdown has affected all furloughed workers of the Federal workforce, many employees performing excepted duties during the furlough have the additional hardship of losing their subsidies for childcare and transit benefits but continuing to incur childcare and commuting expenses in order to continue reporting to work,” OPM Acting Director Margaret Weichert said in a press release. “OPM is grateful to the dedicated men and women of the Federal workforce who are serving the American people during the partial lapse in appropriations, and we strongly encourage agencies to be as accommodating as possible during the current lapse in appropriations.”
Wednesday marked the 33rd day of the shutdown, the longest in the nation’s history. About 800,000 federal workers are likely to miss a second paycheck on Friday.
Parts of the federal government shuttered on Dec. 22 after negotiations between the Trump administration and Democratic leadership broke down over funding for the president’s proposed southern border wall.
The Senate is scheduled to vote on two competing pieces of legislation on Thursday that could reopen the government, one from Trump and another from Democrats. The president’s bill would keep the government funded through Sept. 30 but includes $5.7 billion for a physical barrier at the U.S.-Mexico border, which Democrats have said they won’t support. The Democratic bill would temporarily fund the government through Feb. 8 but would not give any money for the wall. Democrats say the measure would provide the parties with time to discuss border security while federal employees are being paid.
