OGDEN, Utah — As the federal government shutdown continues, some employees of the Internal Revenue Service in Ogden are left with uncertainty and anxiety.
“We’re hearing so much, that we may not get paid, or we will get paid, but we may not get back pay if we’re furloughed — there’s all kinds of different things,” said Robert Lawrence, president of the National Treasury Employees Union representing workers in Ogden.
It’s not his first shutdown after about 20 years of working with the IRS, but he said this shutdown feels different.
Shambree Orozco has worked at the IRS for the past five years. She has six kids and is trying to figure out what to do next.
“I’ve gone through threats of the shutdown, but I’ve never actually had physical shutdowns, so this is like mind-blowing. I’ve been crying the last few days,” she said. “I actually love what I do at the IRS. I feel like every day I’m able to help taxpayers.”
She was furloughed on Friday. She’s not alone.
“My stomach’s in a knot, I’m scrambling to see what I can do, if I can even do anything. Am I going to get a job now that I’m furloughed?” said Lawrence.
These employees don’t know when they will get their next paycheck.
“I had a Maverik hot dog for breakfast today and day-old chips,” said Lawrence. “I bought my 24-pack of ramen noodles, and we’ll see what happens after that.”
On Wednesday, the IRS announced furloughs for nearly half of its employees — that’s about 34,000 workers nationwide, including employees here in Ogden.
“I’m a single mom, so I don’t have a fallback — this is my life,” said Orozco. “Do I call my landlord and let him know the situation? I need to call about my car, I have car insurance, I have my kids’ school lunches I have to pay for, I have a surgery coming up on the 16th, and I’m at a loss.”
And the furloughs don’t just impact the employees, but the Ogden ecosystem.
“When it hurts one group of people in a tight-knit community like ours, it’s a ripple effect,” said Andrew Shorts, owner of Two-Bit Bistro.
Shorts says a big reason that they stayed on 25th Street after reopening was because of all the foot traffic in the area, and some of that comes from federal workers down the road. Now, he’s worried that business is taking a hit.
“I’m noticing an absence of activity on the street, and that comes down to people going out for lunch breaks, calling in to get a soup or a salad from here, or a beer after work,” said Shorts. “We see those people when they are secure in their jobs — they congregate, go out and they support local business, and they engage in the community. But as soon as they’re unsure about that, got to save the finances.”
They all hope something good happens soon.
“I would love to go back and I would love to keep doing my job, but it’s, what’s going to happen next,” said Orozco.
Based in New York, Stephen Freeman is a Senior Editor at Trending Insurance News. Previously he has worked for Forbes and The Huffington Post. Steven is a graduate of Risk Management at the University of New York.