Fed Government Shutdown 2025: non-political thread

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I remember seeing guidance from OPM that furloughed employees could check their work email once a day (nominally to see if they had received a RIF notice) but now I can't find that guidance. Does anyone have a link?

Personally, I've been checking my email. There are so many unusual things going on for this shutdown that whatever was normal no longer applies.
If needed, call your supervisor and ask if you can check your work email.

+100 to this being an unusual shut down. I'm not a Fed so pardon my ignorance, but on what basis are the RIFs being justified rn? That part makes zero sense to me.

[Anonymous]

I thought the house was coming back Tuesday but now I am reading they won't come back until after Columbus Day? How can they just avoid responsibility like that?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I thought the house was coming back Tuesday but now I am reading they won't come back until after Columbus Day? How can they just avoid responsibility like that?

Seems crazy.

But even if they come back Tuesday, that means the very earliest things can re-open is Wednesday?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I remember seeing guidance from OPM that furloughed employees could check their work email once a day (nominally to see if they had received a RIF notice) but now I can't find that guidance. Does anyone have a link?

Personally, I've been checking my email. There are so many unusual things going on for this shutdown that whatever was normal no longer applies.
If needed, call your supervisor and ask if you can check your work email.

Our agency provided very strong instructions to not check your email, saying accesses will be logged and that non-excepted employees will be disciplined if they try.

The problem is, they only said that at a town hall meeting for excepted employees, after the non-excepted employees already left.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I remember seeing guidance from OPM that furloughed employees could check their work email once a day (nominally to see if they had received a RIF notice) but now I can't find that guidance. Does anyone have a link?

Personally, I've been checking my email. There are so many unusual things going on for this shutdown that whatever was normal no longer applies.
If needed, call your supervisor and ask if you can check your work email.

+100 to this being an unusual shut down. I'm not a Fed so pardon my ignorance, but on what basis are the RIFs being justified rn? That part makes zero sense to me.

They're not attempting to provide justification.

[Anonymous]

IMO, they should be required to pay backpay either with interest, or at a special premium rate. If I am late making a payment because I can't get it together, then I have to pay interest and possibly a laye fee on the balance owed, so why should the government not have to pay interest or a fee to me when they are late making a payment to me?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I thought the house was coming back Tuesday but now I am reading they won't come back until after Columbus Day? How can they just avoid responsibility like that?

They don’t want to swear in the new rep from Arizona because she would be the tipping point vote to release the Epstein files. Really.

[Anonymous]

Smithsonians have money to stay open thru the 11th. Thank you folks there it's appreciated by tourists and us locals who now have time to see something nice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I remember seeing guidance from OPM that furloughed employees could check their work email once a day (nominally to see if they had received a RIF notice) but now I can't find that guidance. Does anyone have a link?

Personally, I've been checking my email. There are so many unusual things going on for this shutdown that whatever was normal no longer applies.
If needed, call your supervisor and ask if you can check your work email.

+100 to this being an unusual shut down. I'm not a Fed so pardon my ignorance, but on what basis are the RIFs being justified rn? That part makes zero sense to me.

On the basis that they want small government. Russel Vought, the OMB director and one of the people behind Project 2025, has been working towards this his entire adult life. The GOP bill is supposed to slash the State Department's funding by 84%!!! Other agencies are getting large cuts as well. So layoffs were coming anyway, because it's not possible to slash funding like this without kicking out large numbers of employees.

The threats of layoffs during the shutdown is just a cruel public relations game, because the White House was going to do them anyway. This is the real reason why Congress Democrats are not backing down.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I remember seeing guidance from OPM that furloughed employees could check their work email once a day (nominally to see if they had received a RIF notice) but now I can't find that guidance. Does anyone have a link?

Personally, I've been checking my email. There are so many unusual things going on for this shutdown that whatever was normal no longer applies.
If needed, call your supervisor and ask if you can check your work email.

Our agency provided very strong instructions to not check your email, saying accesses will be logged and that non-excepted employees will be disciplined if they try.

The problem is, they only said that at a town hall meeting for excepted employees, after the non-excepted employees already left.

Why on earth would employees be disciplined? They're trying to stay on top of guidance.

[Anonymous]

Why do they want the government to start again if the aim is to have small government? Just lay everyone off.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I remember seeing guidance from OPM that furloughed employees could check their work email once a day (nominally to see if they had received a RIF notice) but now I can't find that guidance. Does anyone have a link?

Personally, I've been checking my email. There are so many unusual things going on for this shutdown that whatever was normal no longer applies.
If needed, call your supervisor and ask if you can check your work email.

+100 to this being an unusual shut down. I'm not a Fed so pardon my ignorance, but on what basis are the RIFs being justified rn? That part makes zero sense to me.

On the basis that they want small government. Russel Vought, the OMB director and one of the people behind Project 2025, has been working towards this his entire adult life. The GOP bill is supposed to slash the State Department's funding by 84%!!! Other agencies are getting large cuts as well. So layoffs were coming anyway, because it's not possible to slash funding like this without kicking out large numbers of employees.

The threats of layoffs during the shutdown is just a cruel public relations game, because the White House was going to do them anyway. This is the real reason why Congress Democrats are not backing down.

I'm the PP you responded to; thank you (and the other PP) for your answers! That's beyond messed up. It IS absolutely cruel PR; it'll be even worse if they attempt to re-hire for those jobs, in which case ... why fire anyone in the first place?! Or is the plan to hand the work off to the govcon set?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I remember seeing guidance from OPM that furloughed employees could check their work email once a day (nominally to see if they had received a RIF notice) but now I can't find that guidance. Does anyone have a link?

Personally, I've been checking my email. There are so many unusual things going on for this shutdown that whatever was normal no longer applies.
If needed, call your supervisor and ask if you can check your work email.

+100 to this being an unusual shut down. I'm not a Fed so pardon my ignorance, but on what basis are the RIFs being justified rn? That part makes zero sense to me.

On the basis that they want small government. Russel Vought, the OMB director and one of the people behind Project 2025, has been working towards this his entire adult life. The GOP bill is supposed to slash the State Department's funding by 84%!!! Other agencies are getting large cuts as well. So layoffs were coming anyway, because it's not possible to slash funding like this without kicking out large numbers of employees.

The threats of layoffs during the shutdown is just a cruel public relations game, because the White House was going to do them anyway. This is the real reason why Congress Democrats are not backing down.

Careful, that sounds like political talk.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:IMO, they should be required to pay backpay either with interest, or at a special premium rate. If I am late making a payment because I can't get it together, then I have to pay interest and possibly a laye fee on the balance owed, so why should the government not have to pay interest or a fee to me when they are late making a payment to me?

Honestly they should just be required to pay people. Im sorry but if the work is important enough to be required to be done then they can pay people to do it, on time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How do they handle TSP contributions? I have $904 taken out each paycheck in order to max out the $23,500 annual limit, but I am afraid if paychecks start getting missed, then I'm not going to have the opportunity to make it up this late in the year.

It comes out of the back pay, just like health premiums.