Fed Shutdown Concerns Contractors

We're learning more about employee plans if the federal government shuts down late Friday night. And we are getting more details about what the District government will do if said shutdown occurs.

But what about all of those contractors who work on federal government projects? Some apparently have no clue what's going to happen as the hours dwindle to the shutdown deadline.

As the Washington Business Journal reported:

One contractor that asked to not be named approached his employer to find out whether he'd be forced to take paid vacation or furloughed for the duration of the shutdown. The answer he got was what amounted to a shrug -- the company had yet to decide.

People attending a small business conference at a Northwest hotel showed much concern about the fallout of a federal government shutdown.

"I have a small, woman-owned business, I have contractors, I have a lot of clients who depend on the federal government," said Jeannie Jones, of J3 Consulting. "So we are all concerned."

ACT-IAC helps bring together information technology firms and government agencies. For businesses that work with them, federal contracts are a critical source of income. They said if workers and contractors are furloughed, it's going to hurt.

"Whether you're a federal worker or a contractor, those who are sent home and declared 'nonessential,' they may or may not get paid," said Kenneth Allen, of ACT-IAC. "For a lot of people that's going to hurt the bottom line. There are a lot of people in this town who live from paycheck to paycheck."

And the confusion over who is "essential" and who is not continues.

"I've talked to several federal employees, and they haven't even heard if they're critical personnel or not," said Kurt Anderson, of Nexus Technologies.

With so many questions, Rep. Jim Moran (D-Va.) will hold an emergency town hall meeting Thursday night to address the public's concerns about the impact on the federal workforce, contractors and the local economy.