Relief for Federal Workers as Government Shutdown Ends

Thu Nov 13 2025 16:58:50 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

After weeks of uncertainty and financial struggle due to the federal government shutdown, federal workers are poised to receive back pay and have their jobs reinstated, as a bipartisan deal brings the impasse to a close.

With the recent end of the longest federal government shutdown, federal employees like Jessica Sweet are beginning to recuperate from the financial strain of a month without pay. As the shutdown lasted six weeks, many workers were left furloughed or working without compensation, forcing them to cut back on essentials. The bipartisan agreement that finally resolved the issue ensures not only a return to work but also back pay for those affected. However, many federal workers express frustration over their treatment in the negotiation process, questioning the motives of lawmakers involved.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Jessica Sweet spent the federal government shutdown cutting back. To make ends meet, the Social Security claims specialist drank only one coffee a day, skipped meals, cut down on groceries and deferred paying some household bills. She racked up spending on her credit card buying gas to get to work.

With the longest shutdown ever coming to a close, Sweet and hundreds of thousands of other federal workers who missed paychecks will soon get some relief. But many feel that their livelihoods served as political pawns in the fight between recalcitrant lawmakers in Washington and are left wondering whether the battle was worth their sacrifices.

“It’s very frustrating to go through something like this,” said Sweet, who is a union steward of AFGE Local 3343 in New York. “It shakes the foundation of trust that we all place in our agencies and in the federal government to do the right thing.”

The shutdown began on Oct. 1 after Democrats rejected a short-term funding fix and insisted that health insurance subsidies remain in any agreement. Its end emerged when eight Democratic-aligned senators agreed to a deal to fund the government without an extension of the expiring subsidies.

Federal workers deeply felt the impacts of the shutdown

The shutdown created a cascade of troubles for many Americans. Throughout the shutdown, at least 670,000 federal employees were furloughed, while about 730,000 others were working without pay, according to the Bipartisan Policy Center.

The plight of the federal workers was among several pressure points, including flight disruptions and cuts to food aid, that ultimately ratcheted up the pressure on lawmakers to reach an agreement.

Throughout the six-week shutdown, officials in President Trump’s administration repeatedly used federal workers as leverage to push Democrats to concede on their healthcare demands. The message from the administration indicated that workers who went unpaid would not receive back pay with threats of firings adding to an already uncertain environment.

The deal ending the shutdown will prompt reversals of recent layoffs and guarantee back pay for furloughed federal workers and also funding for programs such as SNAP food aid.

Frustration over the shutdown and how it ended

Yet many employees were left disillusioned by the events that unfolded, with concerns that the longest shutdown could recur in the future.

“Stress and hunger are great tactics for traumatizing people,” Sweet remarked.

She added that her frustration is compounded by feelings of betrayal from Democratic senators who deviated from their party’s stance on subsidies, emphasizing that there were countless workers who understood the stakes.

“There are other federal workers who understood what we were holding the line for and are extremely unhappy that line was crossed and that trust was breached,” she stated.

Ready to get back to work

Adam Pelletier, a National Labor Relations Board examiner who faced furlough since Oct. 1, expressed relief at the agreement to rehire workers but likened the negotiation process to the 'Charlie Brown' scenario, feeling deceived by the ongoing turmoil.

Pelletier, a union leader for NLRBU local 3, had prepared for the shutdown well in advance, noting that federal employees felt like pieces in a political game. Many workers shared the sentiment of wanting to return, albeit shaken by the experience.

“This has been the worst time in my 20 years as a federal employee,” said Elizabeth McPeak, a furloughed IRS employee. Colleagues reached out to landlords to postpone rent and relied heavily on food banks for survival.

“A month without pay,” McPeak reflected, “is a long time to go.”

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For ongoing coverage of the federal government shutdown, visit https://apnews.com/hub/government-shutdown.