Government

The Shutdown Today: Workers to Get Paid ‘in the Coming Days’

LOS ANGELES SENTINEL — What’s up now that the partial government shutdown ended after 35 days.

Published

7 years ago

January 27, 2019

Oakland Post

By Sentinel News Wire

What’s up now that the partial government shutdown ended after 35 days:

WHAT’S NEW

Park rangers were once again greeting visitors at some national parks across the United States and flight operations at major airports were returning to normal on Saturday, one day after a partial government shutdown came to an end.

While there were signs that some government machinery was grinding back to life after a record 35 days without funding, many federal workers and their families approached the end of the shutdown cautiously, saying they were relieved they would receive paychecks again, but would continue to restrict their spending amid fears that another shutdown could happen in weeks.

The National Park Service said it was working on reopening all of its parks as quickly as possible, but some parks may not open immediately depending on their staff size and complexity. The Virgin Islands National Park, Cape Hatteras National Seashore, the Wright Brothers National Memorial and the Great Smoky Mountains National Park were among the parks that reopened Saturday. Grand Canyon National Park issued a statement saying it would be fully operational this week.

SHUTDOWN ENDS

President Donald Trump signed a short-term deal Friday to end the shutdown after delays at the nation’s airports and widespread disruptions brought new urgency to efforts to resolve the standoff. The shutdown caused 800,000 federal employees to miss paychecks

Travelers endured widespread flight delays in the Northeast as federal officials grappled with a shortage of air traffic controllers, who missed paychecks Friday because of the partial government shutdown. LaGuardia Airport in New York and Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey were the hardest hit, but delays rippled across the nation’s air-travel system.

Federal workers who have gone a month without getting paid during the longest government shutdown in U.S. history expressed relief Friday that a deal had been reached to end the impasse but are worried they’ll be in the same spot in a few weeks.

When will they get paid? It’s unclear at this time. The White House tweeted that it will be “in the coming days.”

This article originally appeared in the Los Angeles Sentinel.