Do Congress members get paid, and janitors don’t in US govt shutdown? WION fact checks

Amid the US government shutdown chaos, a podcaster, Dan Koh, claimed that during this period, many federal employees will be left unpaid, but members of Congress will still get paid. While talking on The People’s Cabinet podcast, he said, “The janitors never get paid.”

The podcaster has worked previously as a deputy assistant to former President Joe Biden. He added in one of the clips of the podcast posted on September 29 on X that almost all janitors who work on federal property are employed by private contractors.

“There is no obligation, and Donald Trump, I guarantee you, has no intention of paying these janitors if the government shuts down,” Koh said, adding, "So they get completely screwed. There is no back pay. They just get no money.”

Who actually gets paid?

As per the US law, members of the House and Senate continue to get paid during a shutdown. Federal law says that federal employees get back pay, but the law does not extend that to contractors, a group that includes many janitors.

Why the shutdown?

The shutdown is a result of disagreement between Republicans and Democrats over passing a bill funding government services into October and beyond. The Republicans control both chambers of Congress, but in the Senate - or upper chamber - they are short of the 60 votes they need to pass a spending bill.

Around 04:01 GMT on Wednesday (October 1), America's shutdown was announced - for seven years.

When will this end?

The ending of the shutdown totally depends on the bill's situation. If the Republicans negotiate an extension to the healthcare subsidies that the Democrats are demanding, the shutdown will come to an end. There is a second way as well. If the Democrats back down and agree to fund the government - at least temporarily - to get things up and running again.