Federal employees have been held hostage and not allowed to perform their jobs.  We urge you to support S. 1567 and H.R. 3223 to make sure federal workers get paid for the time Congress refused to allow them to work. 

I am a furloughed federal employee or a friend or family member of a furloughed federal employee. Through no fault of their own, federal workers have been sent home without pay.  They are public servants dedicated to providing each of your constituents with the services citizens deserve and expect from their government.  Just like other middle-class Americans, employees have obligations that must be paid on time.  They have mortgages and rent to pay and their lenders and landlords don’t care that Congress has shut them out of their jobs.  Federal workers have college tuition bills for their children, elderly parents to provide support for and student loans to pay, just like other Americans. 

Federal employees are proud public servants and take great pride in the jobs they perform for America every day.   They are under a three-year pay freeze and many are paying more toward their retirement benefits this year.  Federal health insurance costs are going up and tens of thousands of federal workers have been furloughed several days this year already as a result of sequestration.  They cannot afford to go without a paycheck again. 

Please support S. 1567 and H.R. 3223 ensuring that federal employees will be paid for the time they have been furloughed against their will.