The longest government shutdown ended on Nov. 9, with Senate Democrats reaching an agreement with Republicans, and within the week, President Donald Trump signed the bill officially ending the shutdown.
Now that the government has reopened, people are returning to work after being furloughed and programs are getting back their funding, things are starting to return to how they were prior to the shutdown.
However, after 43 days of pause, there are still questions and concerns about the reopening.
One example of this is disruptions to travel by plane and other air traffic control issues. As of Nov. 13, there were 1,017 canceled flights and 2,478 flights were delayed.
Airlines for America President and CEO Chris Sununu said it could take up to a week for air travel to return to normal operations after the government shutdown ends.
Trump, in a Truth Social post, said that air traffic controllers need to go back to work immediately. He called those who worked during the shutdown patriots, but is not happy with those who did not work during the shutdown.
“For those that did nothing but complain, and took time off, even though everyone knew they would be paid, IN FULL, shortly into the future, I am NOT HAPPY WITH YOU,” Trump wrote.
Air traffic controllers are required to work regardless of the shutdown; however, many used sick hours or other means of calling off work while they weren’t being paid.
Controllers did receive a partial paycheck in the middle of October for work completed prior to the shutdown that started on Oct. 1, but missed their full paycheck for the month on Oct. 28.
In the same post, Trump said those who worked through the shutdown will get a $10,000 bonus. Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy says that back pay will be coming in the following days.
“I want them to come to work,” Duffy said. “The problem is they’re confronted with real economic problems.”
However, air traffic controllers have had issues with government shutdowns and back pay before this current pause.
During the last shutdown in 2018 during Trump’s first term, dozens of controllers sued the federal government for overtime and other compensation they said they were owed.
The lawsuit took years, with many of those who sued only getting the small payments. One of the air traffic controllers, who did not reveal their name, told NPR that not only was the payment slow, but they didn’t get any payment until this year.
“I just got a $400 check, just, like, maybe a week before the shutdown, that was from that 2019 shutdown,” they said.
Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have begun discussing potential reforms to prevent similar disruptions for future shutdowns, including proposals to ensure continuous pay for essential safety workers or to exempt certain transportation-related agencies entirely.
Reps. Steve Cohen (D-TN) and André Carson (D-IN) introduced a bill that would let the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) use the Airport and Airway Trust Fund during shutdowns to keep programs running and employees paid.
The Airport and Airway Trust Fund, also known as the Aviation Trust Fund, helps fund the FAA investments, such as better construction and improvements to airport safety.
It also supports upgrading outdated technological services to the air traffic control system, as well as FAA operations, which include providing air traffic control, overseeing commercial space launches and conducting safety inspections.
Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and others introduced the True Shutdown Fairness Act. This would pay all federal employees, contractors and service members during a shutdown. Republican Senator Ron Johnson (R-WI) also supports the act.
