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Since I've been a federal employee, I've been on both sides of the (furlough) fence being either ESSENTIAL or NONESSENTIAL. Right now, I'm considered ESSENTIAL even though all my counterparts are currently furloughed. Just to be fair, I think the ESSENTIAL personnel who work thru the shutdown should be granted some form of admin leave compensation if the furloughed staffers are indeed backpayed.
I would be okay with that. Non-essential people did not choose not to work though, so they shouldn't be penalized in any way. However, essential workers are working extra (presumably picking up the work of those furloughed), so some minor compensation would be understandable.
Although, essential workers have the benefit of being able to go to work during shutdowns, and are almost guaranteed of back pay, while non-essential aren't. For non-essential workers, one of the most painful things about the shutdown is probably the fact that you all aren't allowed to work and they have to go through the mental stress of checking news/social media to see what's happening. I can't imagine the mental toll that must take on someone. At least if you are working, you can avoid that distraction. I am almost positive that no "essential" employees would want to trade places with a non-essential" employee, even if they don't get any extra compensation/leave.
There does not seem to be any real sense of urgency to end this shutdown yet some people want those who are affected by it to not get paid. The people responsible for the shutdown will get paid and so should the furloughed employees. My agency is funded this time around so I am not affected, but I still know people who are. This is not a "vacation" for them.
Absolutely not. I have three family members who are affected by it. One is working with no pay (yes, I know they will get back pay) and two more are sitting at home anxiously waiting for word they can go back to work.
It's not a big deal for people who aren't affected, but for those 800,000 and their immediate family, it's a very big deal.
Absolutely not. I have three family members who are affected by it. One is working with no pay (yes, I know they will get back pay) and two more are sitting at home anxiously waiting for word they can go back to work.
It's not a big deal for people who aren't affected, but for those 800,000 and their immediate family, it's a very big deal.
Riiiggghhhtt...anxiously sitting at home watching TV or fishing perhaps. It's funny that most of my furloughed coworkers are posting FB pix out in the country or skiing while they're "anxiously awaiting" for word to go back to work.
Riiiggghhhtt...anxiously sitting at home watching TV or fishing perhaps. It's funny that most of my furloughed coworkers are posting FB pix out in the country or skiing while they're "anxiously awaiting" for word to go back to work.
A lot of them were already on holiday leave using their vacation (it is the week between Christmas and New Year's afterall). Their vacation days are forfeited and they are in a non-pay status right now. So what if they had already booked their vacation. You people are so bitter.
Riiiggghhhtt...anxiously sitting at home watching TV or fishing perhaps. It's funny that most of my furloughed coworkers are posting FB pix out in the country or skiing while they're "anxiously awaiting" for word to go back to work.
Hah, I would hope you don't do that when your place is locked out due to a labor dispute in your cushy private sector job that isn't effected by a government shutdown. The reality is unless a vacation was already paid for, it would be stupid to pay for one on credit when you don't know when your next paycheck will come and if it will include pay that the "non-essential" (really non-exempt) employees should have got. The only guarantee most times is for the workers who were deemed essential and were excepted to work during the shutdown but for no pay.
Be careful, you are accepting the government's definition of what is and what isn't essential. The people who collect your taxes at the IRS are essential. The people who help you make sense of the forms and answer questions or the ones who process refund checks, are non-essential.
I think the whole "essential" vs "non-essential" designation is confusing some people. They need a better designation. It's not that the non-essential once aren't needed (which the name implies) it's that they won't be missed temporarily/things won't come grinding to a halt... right away.
Another way to look at it is to look at your own workplace. I am sure there are people there, if they were out, you could cover for or someone could cover for for a short period of time. But if that person left, you've company would need to hire someone to replace. I used to work in a machines shop. The receptionist at a machine shop isn't "essential" to getting parts made for clients and shipping out orders. Ours was once out sick for two weeks with the flu one year. We didn't need her to function. But eventually, someone had to answer the phones and take new orders, answer questions, etc. You can't have the machinists doing it because they need to do their own work (besides, you can't hear the phone ring anyway). The boss brought in his wife to cover for a bit. The receptionist also was the one who ordered materials for the shop too. We had a stockpile we worked with in that time, but we couldn't last forever without her. She was the one with the contacts and had the relationships with the sales people to get us the best deals.
Those furloughed are like that receptionist. You don't need them right now while the government limps along, but long term, you need someone to do those jobs because they won't do themselves.
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