Several US Senators have pledged to stand up for low-wage federal contract workers, by announcing plans to introduce legislation to secure back pay for the contractor employees who have gone without pay during the government shutdown.
Each day, thousands of contractor employees provide critical services to support the federal government, often at low wages, and many have been furloughed or forced to accept reduced work hours as a result of the government shutdown. Many of these workers are janitorial, food, and security services workers.
The legislation was proposed by Senators Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Mark Warner (D-Va.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), and Tim Kaine (D-Va.)