‘No Idea How Long People Can Hold Out’: Federal Workers Feel Brunt of Shutdown “As more than one million government employees go without pay, many are turning to side jobs and food banks to make ends meet.

 

‘No Idea How Long People Can Hold Out’: Federal Workers Feel Brunt of Shutdown

“As more than one million government employees go without pay, many are turning to side jobs and food banks to make ends meet.

Oct. 26, 2025

Jill Hornick, an employee of the Social Security Administration, has joined 730,000 federal employees working without pay because of the government shutdown.Taylor Glascock for The New York Times

Jill Hornick, an employee of the Social Security Administration, has joined 730,000 federal employees working without pay because of the government shutdown.Taylor Glascock for The New York Times

By Eileen Sullivan and Drew Atkins

Eileen Sullivan reported from Washington, and Drew Atkins from Seattle.

When Jill Hornick woke up on Monday morning, her first thought was that her timecard would be submitted that day for her job with the Social Security Administration in Chicago. But this Monday was different. The federal government was locked in a shutdown, and she received a paycheck for $0.

“This is the only income I have,” she said. “And I just started crying. I had a meltdown.”

Ms. Hornick, 59, is one of 730,000 federal employees working without pay because of the impasse. Another 670,000 federal workers are furloughed without pay, according to data from the Bipartisan Policy Center, a Washington think tank.

As the shutdown stretches toward its fifth week, those government employees are confronting an increasingly acute and stressful scenario. Their bills are mounting, and there is no clear resolution in sight.

Some are turning to side hustles like delivering food, walking dogs and selling personal items to bring in a bit of income. Others are relying on food banks that have been hastily organized to provide federal workers and contractors with free groceries — efforts that community service providers say reflect a broadening food insecurity caused by the shutdown.

The widespread anxiety is punctuating what has already been a grueling year for federal workers as the Trump administration has raced to shrink and reshape the government, and moved to eliminate hundreds of thousands of jobs.

The last shutdown, which came during President Trump’s first term, was the longest ever, lasting 34 full days. The current standoff, which began Oct. 1, could stretch even longer. There are no negotiations for a deal to reopen the government, which Democrats say must include an agreement to extend expiring subsidies for health insurance.

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