Still, picking up another job isn’t an easy process for government employees, said Richard Painter, a law professor at the University of Minnesota and the chief White House ethics lawyer for President George W. Bush.
Government agencies typically require employees to obtain approval before they can take on an additional job, Painter said. Ethics lawyers usually give the green light on such requests, but, he said, “What do you do if the ethics lawyers are furloughed? They’ve really got these workers in a bind.”
Even if a federal worker is able to process a request for another job, Painter said, there are caps on how much they can earn and conflict-of-interest limitations.
“If you’re a bank regulator at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, you better not go get a job as a teller at a bank,” Painter said. “If you’re working on any matter at the Department of Labor that has a direct impact on McDonalds, then you better not go get a job at McDonalds.”
Employees who don’t go through the approval process can face consequences, including termination.
For many of the more than 400,000 federal employees deemed “essential,” taking on another job is not possible because they’re still expected to show up at their current one.
Greg, and his wife, Michelle, both work for the U.S. Department of Agriculture. He asked to use their first names only, as they’re not permitted to speak to the media.
Even though their savings is quickly disappearing, he still is working his job in which he oversees the protection of natural resources. Meanwhile, his wife is furloughed, and there is no one at her office to approve a request for a second job.
He’s tired of seeing people quip on social media that workers like him should just find other work. “They simply don’t know what they’re talking about,” he said.
Be the first to comment