Dozens of federal workers told Business Insider they are living paycheck to paycheck and cutting their spending during the government shutdown.
The federal government shutdown has become the Grinch who stole Halloween for Johnny Jones.
Halloween is typically a big deal for the Jones family — they love to decorate, hand out candy and hot dogs, and enjoy a neighborhood shindig. But Jones, who works for the Transportation Security Administration, isn’t getting a paycheck during the shutdown. That means big Halloween plans are out of the budget; so is an outing for his daughter and her friends to the new Taylor Swift movie.
“We’re probably another couple of weeks from having to prepare to start selling stuff. I’ve already started identifying things that I could liquidate easily to get cash”, said Jones, who is the president of local 1040 of the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) union.
Across the country, government workers like Jones are cutting back on subscriptions, canceling vacations, skipping car repairs, pausing kids’ dance classes, and delaying credit card payments.
Hundreds of thousands of federal employees have been furloughed or are working without pay amid the shutdown, while the Trump administration pushes through new staff cuts. Most employees received one final prorated check this week for the days worked immediately before the shutdown; it could be their last until Congress reaches a funding deal. The same goes for government contractors, which include people working in cafeteria and janitorial roles at federal buildings, on Capitol Hill, and at national museums and historical sites.
Business Insider interviewed more than two dozen workers across agencies and the military. Some said they are dipping into savings, while others worry they won’t be able to afford medicine and rent next month. The White House has hinted that furloughed workers and those still on the job may not receive back pay. Meanwhile, thousands of federal employees who received termination notices since the start of the shutdown are left in limbo after an October 15 court ruling temporarily paused their layoffs.
Have a tip? Contact these reporters via Signal at alliekelly.10, julianakaplan.33, and asheffey.97. Use a personal email address, a nonwork WiFi network, and a nonwork device. Here’s our guide to sharing information securely.’I won’t have enough savings to pay for the bills’
Federal workers told Business Insider that one check can be the difference between paying a bill or going into debt.
A Pew analysis showed that nearly half of government employees earned under $89,000 annually as of March 2024, with 8% earning less than $50,000 — money that goes fast if families are paying for housing, childcare, groceries, and medicine.
“A lot of us are living paycheck to paycheck, like most Americans, but even more so now we have to be cognizant of where every penny is going”, Mark Cochran, a furloughed National Park Service employee in Pennsylvania and AFGE Local 3145 president, previously told Business Insider.
