The end of 2018 marks the beginning of work without pay for the approximately 54,000 federal border agents and customs officers who received their last paycheck over the weekend.
Of an estimated 60,000 personnel at U.S. Customs and Border Protection, 90 percent were deemed essential and have been working since Department of Homeland Security funding lapsed Dec. 21, according to a congressional report. CBP would not comment on the exact figure when asked Monday.
CBP personnel at its Border Patrol, Air and Marine Operations, and Office of Field Operations components were paid between Dec. 29-30 for time worked prior to the shutdown, but the date of their next paycheck remains a mystery.
Pay schedules vary for government agencies, according to an official within the White House Office of Management and Budget.
CBP employees are paid every two weeks, not twice a month like defense personnel.
Hours worked in the 10 days since the partial shutdown last Friday would theoretically be paid out Jan. 12-13, according to two government officials with knowledge of the schedule.
“The absolute last day for which payroll processing needs to occur for the next pay period is dependent on the agency payroll schedule and the payroll service provider,” a senior administration official said in an email to the Washington Examiner.
Those employees required to work since Dec. 21 will receive back-pay once Congress passes a bill and President Trump signs it.
Trump has refused to sign any funding bill that does not include $5.7 billion for border security projects, including additional and replacement barriers between the U.S. and Mexico.
The shutdown has impacted one-quarter of the government with 380,000 furloughed since Dec. 21, sent home without pay until further notice.
