The federal government is rotten to its core. And this just proves it.
And now a jaw dropping report out of the Washington, D.C. Swamp is turning heads.
As a government shutdown looms, some federal workers are reportedly rooting for it — not out of concern for the country, but because they see it as a chance for extra time off without dipping into their own vacation days.
With Christmas and New Year’s landing on Wednesdays this year, many desk-bound federal employees had already planned to take time off during the holiday season.
A senior official at one executive branch department explained their reasoning:
“With a shutdown, they don’t have to use that annual leave and can save it for the future. Basically, the employees are hoping for a shutdown for the next two weeks because it would amount to a two-week paid vacation without the employees having to use their own vacation time.”
This scheme wouldn’t work for essential employees, like law enforcement officers, who remain on duty regardless of a shutdown.
But for nonessential staff working desk jobs, it’s a win-win.
They can sit out the shutdown with confidence that Congress — following its usual playbook — will likely approve back pay for furloughed employees once the government reopens.
With the Friday deadline to fund the government for fiscal year 2025 fast approaching, lawmakers are scrambling to avoid a shutdown.
But if they fail, the effects wouldn’t hit until Monday, leaving nonessential employees with a lengthy, taxpayer-funded break just in time for the holidays.
Federal workers already enjoy some of the most generous leave benefits in the country.
New employees start with 13 days of annual leave, which increases to 20 days after three years of service and 26 days after 15 years.
On top of that, they receive 13 sick days and 11 paid holidays every year.
Many departments pile on additional perks like administrative leave, which grants extra time off at agency discretion.
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas is a prime example of this largesse.
He’s on track to dole out 10 additional vacation days to employees this year and is expected to hand out even more in early 2025 before he exits with the end of the Biden administration.
Workers are eagerly anticipating his final “gifts.”
While many Americans face tight budgets and unpaid days off during holidays, federal employees banking on a shutdown highlights the growing disconnect between Washington insiders and the taxpayers footing the bill.
Once again, the federal government seems to be working harder for its own benefit than for the citizens it claims to serve.
Stay tuned to the DC Daily Journal.
