‘Used as Pawns’: Georgia federal workers struggle without pay during shutdown

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - Thirty-eight days without pay.

That’s the reality for thousands of federal employees across Georgia as the government shutdown drags on. And for many, it’s pushing them to the brink.

For Angelique Rose, a federal employee and single mother of five, each morning begins before sunrise. She wakes her kids, helps them get ready for school and heads to work, but she’s not getting paid to work the job that once provided her the stability to pay her bills.

“It really feels like I’m being used as a pawn and played in a game that I have no control over at all,” Rose said.

This week, she found a threatening note taped to her door, warning that if she can’t pay rent soon, she could lose her home.

“I understand what my oath is and what my duties are,” Rose said. “I’m fully capable of doing them. But mentally and physically, it’s starting to take a toll.”

Rose said she’s keeping her lights off to save money. She tried to take out a loan, but the check was stolen from her mailbox. She’s rationing gas just to make it to work, and she’s down to her last pack of diapers.

“It feels horrible as a mom, not being able to be what I want to be for my kids,” Rose said.

The hardest moment, she said, was not being able to give her son the birthday he deserves.

Experts say each day the government remains closed, the economic fallout deepens, from families missing paychecks to businesses losing customers.

According to the Council of Economic Advisers, Georgia loses about $450 million every week the shutdown continues, or nearly $2 billion a month.

Across the state, roughly 110,000 federal workers could face furloughs or delayed paychecks.

For Rose, that means more sleepless nights worrying about how to keep her family afloat.

“The blame is a whole,” she said. “It’s not just one side. Not red versus blue. We’re supposed to be a team, and right now, we’re not.”

Federal employees are legally guaranteed back pay once the government reopens, but for families like Rose’s, the bills are due now.

If you want to help, she created a GoFundMe.