\n<\/p>\n
\u201cThe question I\u2019m sure is on everyone\u2019s mind, mine particularly, is: What is going on?\u201d says Julie, a TSA agent in her early 20s. She speaks over the sound of a train in the background. She\u2019s changed her commute to work so that she doesn\u2019t have to pay for gas. \u201cWhat is happening? Why do we have ICE agents [at the airport]?\u201d<\/p>\n
She\u2019s worked for the agency for almost three years now. It started out great, and she hopes to use the job as a way into a career with the government. But two shutdowns later, her once reliable employment feels wobbly. The last paycheck Julie received, for about $720, came on February 16. But she doesn\u2019t have any plans to quit.<\/p>\n
\u201cI do enjoy this job. I do enjoy the benefits that I\u2019m getting,\u201d she says. \u201cI am financially stable with this pay, and the stability of the job market is not at its best.\u201d It may be a public agency, but Julie is something approaching a company woman. \u201cManagement has told us time and time again, \u2018keep the political talk to a minimum,\u2019 especially in public,\u201d she says. \u201cSome people are like, \u2018I wanna go home, this sucks, this stinks,\u2019 but, you know, what can we do? We\u2019ve just got to keep showing up to work.\u201d<\/p>\n
But no matter how they might feel about the job normally, many agents are at the end of their rope.<\/p>\n