Federal employees across South Florida are missing their first full paycheck Friday as the government shutdown stretches into its 24th day.
Essential workers, including TSA employees and air traffic controllers at Miami International Airport, are still showing up for duty despite not being paid.
“It’s 24 days now without even a coin,” said Tino Peterson, who has worked as a TSA officer at MIA for 23 years.
On Friday, Feeding South Florida handed out produce, milk, eggs, meat, and shelf-stable pantry items to dozens of federal workers who haven’t received a full paycheck in nearly a month.
“Oh, this is so great. I really appreciate it for me and my partners here for the help in these bad moments,” Peterson said.
“The plan is to do 250 households today that we will be feeding for the government employees here. We are so excited about what we are doing today for the community,” said Helen Hines, Feeding South Florida mobile pantry coordinator.
There are about 1,200 TSA workers at MIA alone, according to the union that represents them.
Some TSA workers struggle but stay committed to their jobs
Some workers said they were hesitant to receive help.
“As long as I can feed my son. Some people have shame coming over here, but my son—I’ll do anything for him,” said Jack Johns, a TSA worker at MIA for about two decades.
Johns said this is not the first time he has been through a shutdown.
“It’s nothing new to me. It happened in 2018, but remember back then the rent wasn’t the same as it is now, so it’s a big difference,” Johns said.
Feeding South Florida plans more food distributions
On Thursday, the Senate failed to advance a measure that would pay federal employees during the shutdown. That leaves many South Florida workers wondering when they will get paid again.
“Here we are. We’re still coming to work, showing up. We’re here for the mission, and we’re grateful for all the things they’re doing for us,” said Diana Perez, a TSA employee at MIA.
Next week, Feeding South Florida will hold another food distribution, this time for federal workers at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport.
