The American Federation of Government Employes is suing the Obama administration over a possible government shutdown.
The suit, which was filed in a D.C. District Court, contends that the administration is “violating the U.S. Constitution’s Appropriations Clause and Thirteenth Amendment by requiring federal civilian employees to work without pay during a period of lapsed federal appropriations.”
Office of Management and Budget Director Jack Lew and Office of Personnel Management Director John Berry are named as codefendants in the lawsuit.
“Hundreds of thousands of federal employees will be required to work during a shutdown, and there’s no guarantee that Congress will keep the administration’s promise to pay those employees once the shutdown is over,” AFGE National President John Gage said in a statement released on Friday.
The organization represents 600,000 federal employees. Should a shutdown occur at midnight tonight, as many as 800,000 such workers could be furloughed until new funding is appropriated. However, thousands more who are deemed “essential” would be forced to work without pay. These employees would likely be paid retroactively.