Hundreds of federal law enforcement at Elkton prison impacted by government shut down

Right here in the Mahoning Valley you likely have friends and neighbors who are essential employees for the federal government.

That means they are forced to go to work, but will not be paid during the partial government shutdown, now in its 14th day.

The longer the divide in Washington goes on it may not only affect each family's bottom line but the local economy.

That's because hundreds of federal law enforcement officers work at FCI Elkton in Lisbon and they will not get a paycheck next Friday, January 11th, if federal lawmakers don't reach some agreement.

But employees like Megan Fitzsimmons, the secretary for the American Federation of Government Employees Local 607, are still required to report to work and could be asked to work overtime up to 16 hours a day.

"My husband also works for the federal government.  So neither one of us is going to be getting a check.  But we're still going to work.  So we're still going to be paying for child care, we're still going to be putting gas in our cars, we're still going to be having to buy food, obviously. But we're not getting paid for what we're doing," Fitzsimmons said.

The union representing the law enforcement officers at FCI Elkton said it's illegal for the government to expect them to work with no pay during this partial government shut down.

That's why the American Federation of Government Employees has filed a lawsuit against the government based on the Fair Labor Standards Act, ironically a law passed by Congress.

The president of the local union, Joseph Mayle, said, "It's not only inhumane what they're doing to us, but it's also illegal.  Why are we being used as political pawns? We don't make these decisions.  These decisions have nothing to do with us.  But we're the ones being affected.  Congress is still getting paid.  The president is still getting paid.  They're not doing their job."

And adding insult to injury for these federal officers Fitzsimmons said, "We still have to pay the inmates to work for us, but we're not getting a paycheck.  It's a bit demoralizing."