Kaine, Colleagues Introduce Legislation to Pay All Federal Employees, Servicemembers, & Contractors During Shutdown

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) and 21 of his Senate colleagues introduced legislation to pay all federal employees – both those excepted and furloughed – as well as our servicemembers and federal contractors during the current Republican-led shutdown. The True Shutdown Fairness Act would also prevent the Trump Administration’s attempts at mass firings (Reductions in Force or RIFs) while the government is shut down.

The legislation is led by U.S. Senator Chris Van Holl (D-MD), and cosponsored by Senators Gary Peters (D-MI), Patty Murray (D-WA), Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD), Andy Kim (D-NJ), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Brian Schatz (D-HI), Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), Chris Coons (D-DE), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Ed Markey (D-MA), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE), Peter Welch (D-VT), Tina Smith (D-MN), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Mark Kelly (D-AZ), and Rev. Raphael Warnock (D-GA).

The legislation is endorsed by American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU), National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE), American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers (IFPTE), Partnership for Public Service, and The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO).

“Since day one, the Trump Administration has enacted policy after policy to traumatize, politicize, and hollow out the federal workforce that delivers essential services to the American people. Now, Senate Republicans want to give President Trump more power to decide which of these workers get paid, and which get punished. Nothing about that is fair, and I’m proud to stand with my Democratic colleagues in proposing alternative legislation to ensure that America’s entire workforce of dedicated and patriotic federal employees is treated equally,” said Kaine.

The True Shutdown Fairness Act would immediately restart pay for all excepted and furloughed federal workers, servicemembers, and federal contractors during the current shutdown. The legislation also includes a prohibition on Reductions In Force while the federal government is shut down. Federal employees are ensured retroactive pay after a shutdown ends due to the Government Employee Fair Treatment Act – legislation that Senators Kaine, Van Hollen, Cardin, and Warner worked to pass in 2019 and that was then signed into law by President Trump.

Text of the legislation is available here.

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