By Luzinda Peter
House Speaker Mike Johnson has stated that furloughed federal workers deserve back pay, despite conflicting signals coming from the White House in the ongoing 2025 government shutdown.
Johnson acknowledged that while past practice and public expectation suggest retroactive compensation, new legal analysis is casting doubt on whether back pay is guaranteed under existing law. “It is true that in previous shutdowns, many or most furloughed employees have been paid for the time they were furloughed. But there is new legal analysis … some legal analysts are saying that might not be appropriate or necessary,” Johnson said.
Earlier this week, a draft memo from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) put forward the argument that the Government Employee Fair Treatment Act (GEFTA) of 2019 does not itself appropriate the funds needed for back pay, potentially making such compensation contingent on explicit congressional action. Johnson said he believes that both he and President Donald Trump support the idea of back pay and urged Congress to act accordingly. “I hope that the furloughed workers receive back pay, of course,” he remarked, adding that the president feels similarly.
The dispute has heightened tensions among federal employees awaiting clarity. Critics, including Democrats and unions, argue that withholding back pay contradicts the statutory language of GEFTA, which states that “each employee … furloughed … shall be paid” for the duration of the funding lapse.
President Trump added to the uncertainty, stating that whether furloughed workers get back pay “depends” on the individual and asserting that “some people that don’t deserve to be taken care of” might be treated differently.
At the same time, the White House is pushing a reinterpretation of GEFTA, arguing it authorizes but does not mandate funding. That stance has drawn sharp criticism from lawmakers who view it as a breach of precedent and an attempt to coerce political leverage.
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