A group of House lawmakers called on the House Appropriations Committee to include a provision to compensate federal contractor workers for their lost wages in upcoming funding measures as the result of a 35-day partial government shutdown. The lawmakers sent a letter Thursday to Committee Chairman Nita Lowey (D-N.Y.) and Ranking Member Kay Granger (R-Texas) citing the financial impact of the shutdown on employees of federal contractors.
“There are bipartisan bills in the Senate and House of Representatives that would provide back pay to compensate federal contractor employees for their lost wages,†the lawmakers wrote. “As supporters of these efforts, we strongly urge you to include back pay for federal contractor employees in any supplemental appropriations bill for fiscal year (FY) 2019 or as part of the regular appropriations process for FY 2020.â€
The letter was signed by 48 members of the lower chamber, including Reps. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.), Donald Norcross (D-N.J.), Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-Washington, D.C.) and Elijah Cummings (D-Md.)
