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Wisconsin congressman one of seven to vote against back pay for federal workers

Posted at 7:53 PM, Jan 11, 2019
and last updated 2019-01-11 20:53:21-05

U.S. Rep. Glenn Grothman of Wisconsin was one of seven House members to vote against a proposal to give federal workers back pay for unpaid work during the partial government shutdown.

The measure passed nearly unanimously with a vote of 411-7. Grothman explained his vote, saying the measure pays for federal employees whether they worked or not.

TSA agents had reportedly been calling in sick during the shutdown while they weren’t being paid.

Grothman has been a strong proponent of the border wall, the center of the debate that caused the shut down.

Earlier this month Grothman introduced legislation that would allow the government to accept donations from the public to pay for the wall. That bill has not yet been called for a vote.

Here’s is Grothman’s full statement on his decision to vote against the bill:

“Today, the House of Representatives voted to give back pay to all federal employees, both those who work and those who don’t, during this government shutdown and all future shutdowns. This means that employees that do not work, no matter how long the shutdown, will still receive full pay.

This week I cosponsored H.R. 271 [], the No Work Without Pay Act, which will provide immediate pay for federal employees who are working during the shutdown. House Democrats have refused to allow a vote on this bill. This has created a situation where employees who are working do not know when they will receive their next paycheck, yet they still they are required to pay their work-related expenses.

If Congress really intends to pay people whether they work or not, they should simply have them work.

H.R. 271 [] will pay working federal employees immediately, rather than having them wait until the shutdown is over. This bill, opposed to the S. 24, would pay working federal employees in the timely manner they deserve.”