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Maryland Sen. Angela Alsobrooks and Rep. Sarah Elfreth introduced the Help Federal Workers During Shutdowns Act.
WASHINGTON — Maryland Sen. Angela Alsobrooks and Rep. Sarah Elfreth announced new legislation Monday that would support essential federal workers who are forced to work during a government shutdown without pay.
These employees receive backpay, but under the Help Federal Workers During Shutdowns Act, they would qualify for unemployment insurance. Currently, only furloughed employees get these benefits.
“I want to make it clear that they serve no matter who the president is. Whether that person is Democrat or Republican. They come to work every day because they serve the American people,” Alsobrooks said on Capitol Hill.
Elfreth, who represents 44,000 federal employees, says this is a simple fix that can help households during the uncertainty of a government shutdown.
“These are members of our military, these are TSA agents at our airports, air traffic controllers, they’re law enforcement officers, they’re firefighters on our military installations. I just met FDA inspectors inspecting the safety of our food this morning. All of them perform jobs that simply cannot be abandoned because of chaos in Washington,” she added.
The announcement comes as thousands of federal workers are bracing for potential layoffs after the White House budget office threatened mass firings if Congress did not reach an agreement to keep the federal government funded past Sept. 30.
The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) directed federal agencies to reduce their workforce, specifically in those departments that are not legally required to continue operations and that do not reflect President Donald Trump’s priorities.
A government shutdown is likely following a meeting between Trump and Democratic and Republican congressional leaders at the White House.
Vice President JD Vance told reporters after the meeting, “I think we’re headed into a shutdown because the Democrats won’t do the right thing.”
Democrats are using their leverage to expand Obamacare tax credits that are set to expire at the end of 2025. Democrats say that if this happens, the cost of health insurance could skyrocket for millions of Americans.
“There are still large differences between us,” Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said as he left the White House.
Republicans insist that this issue needs to be taken up after they reach a spending bill.
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