'The worst time' to be a federal employee: Workers question whether the shutdown was worth their sacrifices

‘The worst time’ to be a federal employee: Workers question whether the shutdown was worth their sacrifices Politics Nov 13, 2025 10:55 AM EST

WASHINGTON (AP) — Jessica Sweet spent the federal government shutdown cutting back. To make ends meet, the Social Security claims specialist drank only one coffee a day, skipped meals, cut down on groceries and deferred paying some household bills. She racked up spending on her credit card buying gas to get to work.

READ MORE: The government shutdown will impact an already-struggling economy, from lost paychecks to canceled flights

With the longest shutdown ever coming to a close, Sweet and hundreds of thousands of other federal workers who missed paychecks will soon get some relief. But many are left feeling that their livelihoods served as p