One Government Worker's Furlough Struggle: 'We Don't Know When It's Going to End'
*By Justin Chermol*
As the partial government shutdown spans its 18th day, furloughed federal workers like Sam Shirazi who have been placed on unpaid leave are struggling with both an immediate financial reality and a more amorphous sense of uncertainty.
"We don't know when it's going to end, and it doesn't seem like it's going to end anytime soon," Shirazi told Cheddar's J.D. Durkin on Tuesday. "That's creating frustration for everyone who works for the federal government."
About 420,000 federal employees deemed essential are working without pay while another 380,000 have been furloughed.
Beyond his paycheck, Shirazi's most pressing priority is to care for his daughter ー whose daily routine has been derailed by the shutdown. Her daycare is located in a federal building that has been temporarily shuttered, which presents a major challenge for Shirazi, who must keep her engaged and occupied all day.
"It's difficult because the Smithsonian is closed, the National Zoo is closed," he said of the federally-funded sources of amusement on which he might typically rely. "We have to figure out ways to keep her entertained."
"With small children you need a normal routine or otherwise things go a little haywire, so we're just trying to do our best," he added.
Although some of his peers are considering a shift to the private sector, Shirazi said he values his job with the federal government, but he is "concerned this will affect retention, and also hiring."
"I think people don't want to go into a situation that's so uncertain," he said.
Above all Shirazi said he simply wants to resume his life as a public servant without interruption.
"We want to work, we believe in public service, and we hope that this ends sooner rather than later so we can get back to work. I just hope that our leaders are able to resolve this."
Matt Hayden, vice president of govtech solutions at Exiger and a former assistant secretary of cyber at Department of Homeland Security, joined Cheddar to discuss the surprise phone call initiated by Russian President Vladimir Putin to President Joe Biden, ahead of January security talks about the rising tensions over Ukraine. "We're hoping to hear that we're able to talk about the aggression and the leadup of the Ukrainian militarization," Hayden said. "But we're also looking to hear is how the Kremlin leveraged their talking points to try to test their negotiation stance with the United States leading into this January 10th meeting."
The No Surprises Act begins implementation on January 1, 2022. The legislation is meant to curb the practice of unexpected billing for care from providers the patient was unaware were out-of-network from their insurance. Patricia Kelmar, director of health care campaigns for U.S. PIRG joined Cheddar to describe the hundreds, sometimes thousands, of dollars charged to unsuspecting patients and how things will change under the new law. "If we are picking an in-network doctor and an in-network hospital, we should not see those added costs from anesthesiologists, radiologists, scrub-in surgeons," she said. "The other area it protects you is in air ambulances — not ground ambulances, unfortunately — but the helicopters or the airplanes you might need to transport you in an emergency situation."
President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladmir Putin are expected to have another conversation surrounding escalating tensions between Russia and Ukraine. Ariel Cohen, senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, joined Cheddar's Ken Buffa to discuss the ongoing tensions and why Putin's request for a conversation with Biden comes now. "This is very serious. This is the worst security crisis we had since the collapse of the Soviet Union," Cohen told Cheddar.
Stocks closed mixed on Wednesday, but two indexes - the Dow and the S&P 500 - ended the session with a new record. Akshata Bailkeri, Equity Analyst at Bruderman Asset Management, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell, where she says there is a consensus for robust consumer spreading in 2022, especially as the Omicron variant is proving to be milder than other COVID-19 strains.
John Quelch, Dean of Miami Herbert Business School, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell, where he says the retail giant is acting in accordance to President Biden's new law banning goods from China's Xinjiang region. Quelch also elaborates on the importance of China in Walmart's overall strategy.
