Federal employees returned to work Thursday as the longest government shutdown in U.S. history ended.
It was a shutdown like none other for civil servants.
Thousands were furloughed. Hundreds were threatened with layoffs. And back pay for all was suddenly at risk from the White House, despite President Donald Trump signing a 2019 law guaranteeing such compensation.
Yet those dangers have faded away as Congress passed a legislative package to reopen the government Wednesday. Under that bill, workers will be paid retroactively, whether they were furloughed or not, and shutdown reductions in force, or RIFs, have been reversed.
Federal employees expressed relief tinged with frustration after 43 days of uncertainty as they came to work. POLITICO’s E&E News reporters granted civil servants anonymity to speak freely.
“Politics is politics,” said one EPA employee. “I cannot do much about that.”
Democratic lawmakers had pressed to renew Obamacare premium tax credits as part of reopening agencies. But they eventually relented with only a promise from Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) for a vote to extend the subsidies in December, which struck several government workers as betrayal.
Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought — depicted during the shutdown as a grim reaper in an AI-crafted video posted online by Trump — sent a memo to reopen agencies Wednesday. He thanked leaders for helping usher in Trump’s “Golden Age of America.”
“We went through this short-term disaster with the Democrats because they thought it would be good politically,” Trump said in the Oval Office when signing the bill to reopen the government. “It’s an honor now to sign this incredible bill and get our country working again.”
Others weren’t as celebratory.
Justin Chen, president of American Federation of Government Employees Council 238, EPA’s largest union, said in a statement that although it was “welcome news” that RIFs were pulled back and back pay guaranteed, employees were stressed by the funding lapse.
“Our members should have never been put in a position where their livelihoods were leveraged in a political standoff,” Chen said.
He added, “EPA workers are ready to get back to work, but we are also deeply disappointed that the funding package fails to prioritize Americans’ right to affordable healthcare or provide long-term funding for the agency.”
Here is a look at the scene at energy and environmental agencies Thursday morning:
EPA: ‘Vibes are weird today’
A chill wind rustled autumn leaves outside EPA headquarters. Agency employees were more reticent with reporters compared with the shutdown’s start on Oct. 1, as they trundled into the downtown Washington building complex in winter overcoats.
Solace to be back at work mingled with annoyance.
“It was disruptive — unnecessarily disruptive — for the work that we’re trying to do for the American people,” one staffer said.
The shutdown followed months of turmoil as Administrator Lee Zeldin cut staffing through a combination of incentives to encourage employees to retire early or resign. Layoffs at the agency have been minimal so far.
The spending stop was a strange one at EPA. The agency adopted a “phased” furlough approach that kept employees working on Trump administration priorities, such as repealing regulations and expediting permits, while others were sent home without pay.
Approximately 6,000 to 7,000 EPA staffers were furloughed during the shutdown, according to an estimate by AFGE Council 238. Had carryover funds been exhausted, more than 13,000 would have been furloughed under the agency’s shutdown or “lapse” plan.
“You kind of deal with survivor’s guilt,” said a chemicals office employee who stayed on the job.
A manager in another office also continued to work, even while their employees were sent home without pay. “So it was easy on me, but I was very worried for my staff,” the manager said.
An EPA administrative assistant said they were glad to see the shutdown end so that government workers could get their paychecks.
“Some of those very people that I would’ve been working with, they got furloughed,” the employee said. “So now that they’re back, we can resume the duties I would’ve been assisting with.”
The appropriations lapse didn’t force EPA to put off its plans to restructure — a process that concluded Nov. 2 for the Office of Air and Radiation and will be complete for the water program Monday.
“Vibes are weird today,” said one Office of Water employee. Furloughs for some in the office meant there is “some catching up to do.” About half of that office’s staff eventually got furloughed.
“The reorganization makes everything chaotic because it just happened, and some of the branches were furloughed and some of the branches weren’t furloughed,” said an OAR employee. Furloughs occurred on a team-by-team basis at the air office, with those working on important rulemakings remaining at work throughout.
EPA staffers received an email viewed by E&E News saying back pay was required to be paid “as soon as possible.” The Office of Finance and Administration would automatically convert furloughed hours into paid hours in the agency’s time and attendance system.
“For those of you who were furloughed, it’s good to have you back,” said Michael Molina, principal deputy assistant administrator in the mission support office, in another EPA email. “We are working to make your transition back to work as smooth as possible.”
In response to questions, EPA spokesperson Brigit Hirsch said the agency “fulfilled its statutory obligations and advanced administration priorities through careful, strategic lapse planning.”
Hirsch added, “While Democrats did everything possible to obstruct our progress, we moved forward strategically with a phased lapse plan to preserve funding and critical agency functions, keeping the majority of our employees working to execute the administration’s priorities.”
For some of those who were idled and weren’t worried about finances, the time off offered a chance to catch up on household chores or a welcome break from lengthy commutes.
Still, one veteran employee said, “I’m very thankful to be back and to have a job.”
Department of Interior: ‘It’s daunting’
Half-a-dozen abandoned Veo and Lime electric scooters stood outside the Interior Department headquarters. Cars pulled up every few minutes to the main entrance, mostly with parents dropping off young children at the day care center that stayed open throughout the shutdown.
Interior headquarters was otherwise very quiet between 8:15 and 9 a.m., with minutes passing without anyone coming to the main entrance and the only steady sound coming from a nearby construction site. After 9, the entrance traffic picked up.
“They’re coming in,” noted one contract worker who had remained on the job throughout the shutdown.
A department employee briefly stopped to voice both relief at returning to work and nervousness about what piled up in their absence.
“It’s daunting,” they acknowledged.
Most people entering Interior headquarters who were approached by E&E News declined to talk, sometimes with a sympathetic “what can I do?” smile and sometimes with a determined “leave me alone” stance set to their jaw.
“Here’s what I need you to do. I need you to contact the Interior press office,” one employee said. “They will answer every single question.”
This worker, whose clothing was emblazoned with the Trump name, then carefully spelled out the Interior press office’s email address.
“They won’t answer what you feel inside, though,” the reporter said. “That’s what we’re looking for.”
“I’m sorry,” the Interior employee said as they escaped up the steps to the headquarters’ entrance. “I can’t comment.”
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, appearing Wednesday night on the Fox Business show “The Evening Edit,” focused on what’s been lost during the shutdown.
“We’re in the business of driving revenue through the Department of the Interior, whether it’s grazing leases, oil and gas leases or timber leases,” Burgum said. “We lose revenue every day that we’re shut down. That hurts American businesses.”
DOE: ‘Thrilled to get back to work’
Outside Department of Energy headquarters, employees trickled in steadily, some greeting co-workers and others looking cheerful after weeks of uncertainty.
One employee carried in a tray of muffins for their team as a small celebration of normalcy and the end of the shutdown.
But another employee from the National Nuclear Security Administration lingered near the entrance, saying they had come in to work “just to be on the safe side.” They hadn’t heard anything definitive from their supervisor and didn’t want to risk missing a last-minute instruction.
They had been through three government shutdowns before, but this was their first time being furloughed. To them, this shutdown felt “very different” and “weird” because of the public bickering between Democrats and Republicans.
Most DOE employees worked through the shutdown and were paid. But those workers nonetheless were glad to see the longest government shutdown end.
One said it was difficult to do their job when so many people they needed to communicate with outside the department were furloughed or restricted in what they could do.
“When I was trying to coordinate with colleagues at other agencies who were not working, obviously, that’s difficult,” the person said.
“We’re thrilled to get back to work,” they added. “If taxpayers are sending me a check, I want to do the best I can for the money they give me.”
Another employee was relieved the shutdown is over but disappointed that Congress did not extend enhanced premiums for certain health insurance plans.
“It’s disappointing that so many people’s health care costs will go up,” the person said. “But the Democrats didn’t have enough votes to stop that.”
The episode could yet repeat. The short-term spending patch only lasts until Jan. 30 next year. If Congress doesn’t approve new funding by then, the government would shut down again.
Asked if they were worried about such an outcome, one EPA employee said they were already preparing.
“I’ll just have to have the same game plan I had from the summer,” said the staffer, who was furloughed. “Got to budget for a possible shutdown since you can’t depend on Congress or the administration.”
Reporters Kevin Bogardus, Ellie Borst, Timothy Cama, Jean Chemnick, Michael Doyle, Sean Reilly, Finya Swai and Miranda Willson contributed.
