The Lowest-Paid Shutdown Workers Aren’t Getting Back Pay

Janitors, security guards, and cooks aren’t guaranteed compensation after losing wages

Julia Quintanilla, 55, who has cleaned two federal buildings for 27 years, is shown before her shift begins on Jan. 28, 2019. Quintanilla says she cashed in the last of her sick days during the shutdown to keep some income flowing and now worries she won’t be able to care for her elderly mother with dementia. Photo: Sarah L. Voisin/The Washington Post

By Danielle Paquette

Her debt was mounting: $156 for the gas bill, $300 for electricity, $2,000 for the mortgage. She could no longer afford her blood pressure pills. But what stung Audrey…