Protest Takes Place Outside Philadelphia International Airport As Government Shutdown Now In 28th Day
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PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- The federal government shutdown continues as we head into yet another weekend. Hundreds of thousands of federal workers are furloughed or continue to work without pay, and some have had enough as a protest took place outside of the Philadelphia International Airport Friday.
We are now in the 28th day of the government shutdown. Services have not been delayed at the airport but workers are starting to feel the pinch. There was a protest outside the airport today as people continue to show up to work without a paycheck.
Some have struggled to make ends meet during this time. The airport has stepped up and started a food and supply drive in Terminal C.
Furloughed Federal employees like Jill and Rick White must make ends meet.
"This is devastating. I've gone to the bank and they say, 'When are you going to go back to work?' I say I don't know," said Jill.
Protestors for PASS, an organization representing employees across the aviation industry, took to the terminals to be heard between shifts.
"Essential employees, like myself, the folks here are essential. Just happens to be my day off otherwise I'd be at the tower doing my job like I normally do," said Rick White, an environmental technician.
"The fix is to pay us. Just like anyone else who goes to work they deserve to be paid. We're civil servants. We're not a third world country where you hear about people not getting paid. It shouldn't happen here," said Carlos Aguirre, the national vice president of PASS.
Rep. Dwight Evans, D-Pa., took to Twitter to get SEPTA to provide free transportation for uniformed TSA employees to get to and from work.
"Look, these people do not need to be caught in the middle. I've said consistently, it's not their fault. I thank them for what they're doing. We need to figure out ways how to get this done and not point fingers at the people working every single day," said Evans.
An airport spokesperson said the waiting time is only about 30 minutes to get through TSA and they have not experienced the mass callouts that other airports have had to deal with.
