Six employees of the San Juan Mountains Association have been furloughed because of the federal government shutdown.
“They are essentially temporarily laid off with no recourse for back pay,” said Stephanie Weber, executive director of SJMA. “I’ve encouraged them to file for unemployment, but as long as the offices are closed, they do not get paid.”
The federal government shut down Oct. 1 after Congress failed to reach a budget deal by the mandated deadline. The lapse in funding has frozen all “nonessential” services, including many operations under the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management.
As a partner organization with the federal government, SJMA has been directly affected. The association operates retail stores and manages front-desk services at public land offices across the San Juan National Forest, which are now closed.
“With those offices closed, our retail operations have shut down,” Weber said. “It’s never huge, but we’re in the midst of hunting season, and we do get a lot of traffic for information on conditions, maps, guidebooks – things like that. So all of that came to a screeching halt across Southwest Colorado.”
SJMA manages 13 retail locations in public land offices throughout the region. The closures have also forced the furlough of visitor information staff, who typically provide guidance and support to the public.
“Because we’re a contractor – or a partner to the federal government – my team does not get paid,” Weber said.
She said a few other employees funded through federal agreements remain at work on non-federal projects – for now.
“If this extends, we’ll have to cut their hours because they would be doing things that are specifically for the federal government, and we can’t have them do that because the money is essentially frozen,” she said.
In solidarity with her furloughed staff, Weber said she plans to reduce her own pay, and other permanent employees have volunteered to cut back their hours if the shutdown continues.
“I’ve got six staff who aren’t working or earning an income,” she said. “We’re doing what we can to get through this together.”
jbowman@durangoherald.com
