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U.S. NEWS Saturday 12 January 2019

Federal workers get $0 pay stubs as shutdown drags on

Continued from Front is driving full time for a ride- started driving at Lyft after ployee makes $37 an hour, son. The shutdown has
share company to get by. being furloughed from his which translates into $1,480 made matters much worse.
“We’re America. We can The 59-year-old is planning job as a forestry technician a week, according to La- “I’m just not paying certain
do better than this.” to retire in April. supervisor for the U.S. Forest bor Department data. bills. Car payments are be-
The missed paychecks “I don’t want to borrow Service. That’s nearly $1.2 billion in ing delayed, which is going
were just one sign of the any money,” said Jack- But the side gigs aren’t lost pay each week, when to put a hit on the credit,”
mounting toll the shutdown son, an Air Force veteran making much difference, multiplied by 800,000 fed- he said. “Credit card pay-
is taking on Americans’ who said she makes about and he has been trying eral workers. ments are being delayed.”
daily lives. The Miami air- $38,000 a year as a TSA of- to work with his mortgage Many workers live pay- Maria took out a personal
port is closing a terminal ficer. “I don’t want to get company to avoid missing check to paycheck, de- loan last week just in case.
this weekend because se- into a deeper hole.” a payment. spite the strong economy Now he is pulling his 4-year-
curity screeners have been In Falls Church, Virginia, “Here we are, Day 21, and and the ultra-low unem- old daughter out of day
calling in sick at twice the outside Washington, a all three parties cannot ployment rate. A Federal care and telling his 7-year-
normal rate. Homebuyers school district held a hir- even negotiate like adults,” Reserve survey in May old son he cannot sign up
are experiencing delays in ing fair for furloughed fed- he said, describing govern- found that 40 percent of for extracurricular activities.
getting their loans. eral employees interested ment workers like him as Americans would have to Most of the government
Roughly 420,000 federal in working as substitute “being pawns for an agen- borrow or sell something to workers received their
employees were deemed teachers. da of a wall. You’re not go- make a $400 emergency last paycheck two weeks
essential and are work- Gerri French, who works ing to put a wall across the payment. ago. Around the coun-
ing unpaid. An additional for the Department of Ag- Rio Grande, I’m sorry.” Maria, based in Washing- try, some workers are rely-
380,000 are staying home riculture’s Food Inspec- Economists at S&P Global ton, was already in a fi- ing on donations, includ-
without pay. While fur- tion Service and has been said the shutdown has cost nancially precarious situa- ing launching GoFundMe
loughed federal workers furloughed along with her the U.S. economy $3.6 bil- tion because of two cross- campaigns. Food pantries
have been given back husband, liked the sound lion so far. country moves in 2018 and have opened up in several
pay in previous shutdowns, of substitute teaching. The typical federal em- the birth of a premature locations. q
there is no guarantee that “I think it’s a really great
will happen this time. school system, and this
Workers are turning to Uber, would be a great opportu-
Lyft and other side gigs to nity,” French said.
pick up some money in the Chris George, 48, of Hemet,
meantime. California, has picked up
Ellen Jackson, a Transporta- some work as a handyman,
tion Security Administration turned to a crowdfunding
officer based in Las Vegas, site to raise some cash and

Ex-Texas Rep. Farenthold

quits lucrative port

lobbying job

Associated Press tried to steer a federal con-
VICTORIA, Texas (AP) — A tract to the company of
former Texas congress- port chairman Randy Boyd,
man who resigned last who gave him the job. Ac-
year amid sexual harass- cording to the emails, Far-
ment allegations has quit enthold’s office arranged
his $160,000-a-year lobbyist a meeting in May 2015 be-
position for a port authority. tween Boyd and the Army
The Calhoun Port Authority Corps of Engineers about
announced on Thursday a government project, but
that former Republican federal officials declined to
Rep. Blake Farenthold sub- work with Boyd’s company.
mitted his resignation this The Victoria Advocate
month, the Victoria Advo- sued the port over allega-
cate reported. The port’s tions of open meetings law
board declined to com- violations when it hired Far-
ment further. enthold.
Farenthold’s resignation The lawsuit, which is still
letter said he left the lucra- pending, originally sought
tive position lobbying for a to void the port’s hiring of
port in his ex-district “to pur- Farenthold. With his res-
sue other interests and op- ignation, the newspaper
portunities.” plans to continue seeking
The newspaper raised injunctive relief to prohibit
questions about the former the port from making simi-
congressman’s lobbying lar violations in the future,
post in August after obtain- said John Griffin, an at-
ing emails that show Faren- torney representing the
thold’s office had allegedly newspaper.q