McConnell’s constituents are hurting. He should end the government shutdown.

Workers from the U.S. Census Bureau, where 700 employees are currently furloughed and not receiving their paychecks, gathered at the Federal Building on Broadway in Louisville on Jan. 10 to tell their stories in front of Sen. Mitch McConnell’s office. That was on day 20 of the government shutdown and the testimony delivered by these workers was heart wrenching and disturbing.

Before relaying some of what was said to this gathering of fellow workers and supporters from among the area labor and civil rights communities it should be clear that these workers, their spouses, children and communities are collateral damage in an ill-conceived quest to impose one person’s will while others avoid or deny responsibility for this ruinous shutdown. These federal workers, our fellow citizens, neighbors and friends, earn around $30,000 annually on average and like many workers live paycheck to paycheck.

On that frigid day in Louisville we heard the story of a women suffering from cancer and wondering where the money she needs was going to come from. We heard from others supporting children and facing eviction and wondering where they would live. Another had to make a choice between buying food and making a car payment and food for her family was more important and she lost her vehicle.

This Wednesday, day 33 of the shutdown and the second pay period that paychecks will reflect zero pay, furloughed federal workers brought letters detailing their struggles to survive to McConnell’s office in Lexington. These patriotic workers never even got in the door. McConnell’s staff locked the door and refused to even accept the letters from his constituents. McConnell has ignored the pleas of these federal workers acting as if this is business as usual.

This is not the way it is supposed to work in America. Government workers and contractors, their families and communities should not be held hostage over a policy dispute between conflicting parties. In the case of the shutdown there are 800,000 patriotic, hard-working Americans, including thousands of Kentuckians, being held hostage over a wall designed to further divide our nation.

Every day that this pointless government shutdown drags on, hundreds of thousands of working people are denied their pay and millions lose vital government services they deserve. Those working in our airports and law enforcement say the shutdown makes all of us less secure and endangers public safety.

The president said repeatedly and emphatically that Mexico would pay for the wall. Now 800,000 hard-working Americans, thousands of Kentuckians and the people they serve are the ones paying the price.

It’s time for McConnell to stop shilling for this president and call for a vote to fund the government. Call McConnell’s office and tell him you support our federal workers and to stop the shutdown now.

Bill Londrigan is president of the Kentucky State AFL-CIO.

This story was originally published January 24, 2019 at 1:03 PM.