Question: What about the federal workers who are not furloughed but are forced to stay on the job and work without pay? Are they eligible to file for unemployment insurance?

Answer: “No. Excepted employees who continue working full time during a shutdown are not considered unemployed, so they are not eligible for UCFE benefits,” Chavonnie Ramos, a spokesperson for Hawaii’s Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, said in an email.

UCFE is Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees.

Excepted federal employees include active-duty military personnel, plus others whose work is deemed essential to safeguard life or property or is otherwise mandated by law, and whose pay is tied to annual budget appropriations. Excepted employees work without pay during the federal budget impasse.

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