WASHINGTON—Democratic lawmakers, at a press conference outside the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) on Oct. 14, demanded that federal workers receive back pay when the ongoing government shutdown ends.
The press conference at Washington’s Liberty Plaza was organized by Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), who represents nearly 500,000 federal workers and contractors who live in his state, many of whom have not been paid since the shutdown began. Other Democratic lawmakers from Maryland and Virginia joined him at the event held on the 14th day of the shutdown.
Van Hollen demanded that the furloughed workers receive back pay for the duration of the shutdown once funding is restored, citing a 2019 law that requires it. The OMB has interpreted the law differently, arguing that non-essential furloughed workers are not guaranteed back pay. Instead, Congress needs to specifically appropriate back pay funding for those workers, the office said….