TAMPA, Fla. — "We don't want loans. We don't want anything. We want our paychecks,” said Deborah Hannah, local President American Federation of Government Employees.
Five weeks into the partial government shutdown, these federal employees say they're hurting.
"I have an officer, it's between his child's medication or his child's breathing treatments. It's one or the other. It can't be both with no money coming in,” said Hannah.
Deborah Hanna is a local union president and a Transportation Security Officer.
She says co-workers can't pay their mortgages some are facing evictions and their financial stress may trickle down.
"This could get really, really bad. Flights are not going to go out on time. Things just aren't going to roll as normal,” she explained.
U.S. Representative Charlie Crist and U.S. Congresswoman Kathy Castor gathered with the group of employees at Tampa International Airport on Tuesday.
"We go out there and we dedicate ourselves every day to making sure the traveling public is safe.Ok? We continue to show up to work because we know what's at stake. If we don't come to work, we're going to have another 9-11,” said Ralph Velez who is also with the AFGE.
It's not just TSA workers who are working without pay.
"The first paycheck, I think a lot of us prepared for. When you start losing two to three paychecks, they're gone. I know they're gone and I don't blame them,” said Rojas.
