Portuguese workers at Base das Lajes with unpaid wages will be able to seek an advance, as announced this Saturday by the Regional Government of the Azores
The longest budget shutdown in US government history is having repercussions across borders, with thousands of local workers at US military bases in Europe not receiving pay for nearly six weeks.
According to the Associated Press (AP), thousands of civilian employees who provide services at US bases in European countries have seen their income interrupted since the beginning of the “shutdown”.
In some cases, host governments have decided to advance payments, hoping to be reimbursed by Washington when the situation is resolved.
In the case of Portugal, the approximately 360 Portuguese workers at Base das Lajes with unpaid wages will be able to seek an advance from Monday, as announced this Saturday by the Regional Government of the Azores (PSD/CDS-PP/PPM).
The Azorean executive published in the Official Journal the ordinance that regulates the granting of financial support of a social, temporary and reimbursable nature, corresponding to the advance of outstanding wages for workers assigned to the United States of America Forces in the Azores (USFORAZORES), in Lajes, on the island of Terceira.
Portugal and the United States have a Bilateral Defense and Cooperation Agreement that allows North Americans to enjoy military facilities at the Lajes Base, where a Portuguese civilian staff works.
Also in Germany, the Ministry of Finance confirmed that it had taken on the payment of around 11,000 civilian workers at North American bases, including at Ramstein air base, a strategic center for United States operations in the Middle East and Africa.
In Italy, according to union coordinator Angelo Zaccaria, more than 4,600 Italians work in five North American bases, of which around 2,000, mainly in Aviano and Vicenza, did not receive their October salary.
The period of budget paralysis, known as ‘shutdown’, began almost six weeks ago and is the result of the political impasse in the United States regarding federal approval, which led to the suspension of payments and non-essential activities of the North American Government.
According to Congressional Budget Office estimates, approximately 750,000 federal employees considered non-essential were temporarily furloughed due to the shutdown.
In turn, just over 1.5 million employees, including police officers and air traffic controllers, continue to work, although they will not receive their salaries until the administrative strike is resolved.
Democrats continue to refuse to approve the Senate Republicans’ budget unless they agree to negotiate an extension of Obamacare health program subsidies.
Republicans say they will not sit down to negotiate unless Democrats first approve the federal budget in order to end the federal government shutdown.
