It was a failure by Republican and Democrat lawmakers to pass a stopgap bill that prompted the federal government shutdown this week. But for many of the roughly 83,000 federal workers across the state, this is about much more than politics.

Some don’t know when they’ll be paid next. And uncertainty is rising over who will keep their jobs. Some in the know expect more federal workers could quit over this latest disruption.

For Heather Hughes, a claim specialist at the Social Security Administration, the shutdown means taking a cost hit like missing credit card payments to prioritize utility bills.

“I know that’ll put me behind, but you know, I have to have some disposable income if I don’t get paid for, let’s say, a month, right?” Hughes told The News & Observer, speaking on behalf of her local AFGE union chapter.

The precise number of federal workers in this state has changed, due to Trump administration job reductions. Still, there were roughly 83,000 federal workers in North Carolina as of first quarter 2025, 1.7% of the state’s workforce.

They are more concentrated in some counties than others. In Cumberland, Onslow and Craven counties — home to Fort Bragg, Camp Lejeune and Cherry Point Marine Corps Air Station — federal jobs have made up 12 to 15% of total employment, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages. That excludes active-duty military personnel.

Federal jobs comprised 6.3% of total employment in Granville County, home to the Butner Federal Correctional Complex, in first quarter of 2025. In Durham County, where the Durham Veterans Hospital and the Environmental Protection Agency are located, almost 3% of workers were employed by the federal government. U.S. Postal Service staff deliver mail across the state.

Many federal workplaces, like those across the country, have been disrupted by the Trump administration since the beginning of the year. Job losses have come from the administration shutting down the Environmental Protection Agency’s research division and there have been threats of major cuts to the Veterans Affairs workforce.

White House budget chief Russell Vought told GOP U.S. House members Wednesday that more layoffs would begin later this week, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Mac Johnson, executive vice president of AFGE Local 449 — the union representing Transportation Security Administration employees, said he expects some workers will leave on their own accord.

“People can only go for so long without getting paid, so I anticipate there will be some employees who will be quitting or resigning from TSA,” Johnson said. “In turn, those staffing levels will not be backfilled.”

Preparing for politics

Once lawmakers agree on a stopgap bill to fund the government, federal employees will receive back pay at their regular rate of pay, according to a late September memo from the Congressional Budget Office. That includes furloughed employees who will not work and those who are required to work through the shutdown.

Having been through shutdowns before, some federal employees take steps to prepare for the expected political stalemates in Washington, D.C. For Hughes, sometimes it means prioritizing paying utility bills over credit card fees — which potentially leaves her with more debt.

“Obviously, I don’t want my water or my electricity to be cut off,” Hughes told the N&O. “If I rack up an extra couple hundred dollars on late payments to a credit card or something like that, I just have to swallow it.”

In the past, Social Security Administration workers have sometimes received a letter explaining to their banks what a government shutdown means for their finances, according to Hughes. But no one has to honor “anything like that,” said Hughes, whose union office represents social security field offices in North Carolina and other states.

“It’s not their problem if the government is shut down,” Hughes said. “All of them expect their payments.”

Not enough to save

Federal workers on average make slightly more a week than private-industry, state and local government employees, according to first quarter data from the N.C. Department of Commerce and the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Even so, many live paycheck to paycheck, said Johnson, the TSA union official.

Hughes agreed. “Most people don’t have enough left over from their paycheck to just put in a savings account,” she said.

One of the many side effects of the shutdown is low morale on the job. It’s hard to do the work you’re responsible for when you don’t know when you’ll be paid next, Johnson said.

“It’s unavoidable to not think about, how am I going to provide food for my family tonight or pay my rent the following day,” Johnson said. “In about three weeks, I anticipate people not going to have money for gas to come to work.”

There’s only so much time an employee can go without getting paid before leaving the job altogether. Johnson said the vacant positions may not be refilled.

“I think that’s one of the ultimate goals of this administration,” Johnson said.

Public perception

The new shutdown arrives months into the Trump administration’s push to cut federal spending, which has meant shuttering some federal programs and layoffs

That was the case earlier this year when the administration threatened to dissolve the EPA’s research division. The Office of Research and Development was responsible for creating environmental regulations aimed at public health.

As of July, that division has significantly reduced its workforce, according to the EPA.

Workforce reduction across federal agencies usually has come with allegations of overspending and the promise of more government efficiency. That is very likely altering the public’s perception of federal employees, according to Hughes.

“The administration promotes this idea that the government’s too big, there’s too many employees, there’s all this abuse, we’re all overpaid do-nothings,” Hughes said. “That’s hurtful.

Social Security Administration employees deal with some of the most vulnerable members of the community, Hughes said.

“We don’t just see nine digits and another case to just clear,” Hughes said. “We see a human being, we know that what we’re doing affects somebody’s life.”

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