More than 130 Democratic and Independent lawmakers are demanding that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) ensure that all furloughed federal employees receive back pay after the White House suggested they would not be paid.
In a letter sent to OMB Director Russell Vought on Wednesday, lawmakers pointed to a new update on OMB’s document providing workers with answers on procedures under a federal shutdown that implied furloughed employees are not entitled to back pay.
This, lawmakers said, is unlawful according to a law signed by President Donald Trump during his first administration that said federal employees are entitled to receive retroactive pay if the government is shut down.
“The law is clear: all impacted government employees, regardless of excepted or furloughed status, are entitled to back pay after a government shutdown ends, which is consistent with the guidance currently provided by federal agencies, including the Office of Personnel Management (OPM),” stated the letter.
OPM guidance still shows federal employees as being able to receive that back pay, according to the lawmakers.
“The decision by OMB to remove critical guidance on federal employee back pay is causing unnecessary stress for the federal workforce comprised of nearly 2.2 million employees,” the letter added.
Lawmakers’ letter to Vought is one of the most recent efforts to counter attempts by the Trump administration to pressure a passing vote on Republicans’ continuing resolution to temporarily fund the government, an effort that has failed as Democrats have refused to vote yes on statutes that would eliminate Obamacare subsidies.
Other attempts to pressure a vote have included threatening to lay off thousands of federal employees.
A federal judge who temporarily blocked more than 4,000 terminations due to the shutdown on Wednesday said those efforts are “a way to punish the opposing political party” and “the epitome of hasty, arbitrary, and capricious decision making.”
In their letter, lawmakers demanded immediate action by OMB to “update the Frequently Asked Questions During a Lapse in Appropriations Document and other relevant materials to affirm that furloughed employees will receive back pay, as is required by law.”