For Immediate Release
October 31, 2025
Contact: Communications Director Nikki Gamer | Cell #: (978) 884-0003 | gamer@afsa.org

Washington, D.C. – America can’t afford a “partial” government.

A month into this shutdown, the United States is bleeding leverage abroad, forfeiting contracts to competitors, and introducing avoidable risks to American safety and global standing. Our diplomats are still on the job, often in dangerous places, often separated from family, but without pay and without the tools to do the work the American people expect. That must end.

We appreciate that Diplomatic Security personnel are being paid, and they should be—as should every other federal employee.

Reports from the field paint a stark picture: diplomats are driving unarmored vehicles in high-threat posts because they don’t have funds to repair the armored ones; cyber-attacks are up significantly as adversaries take advantage of the furlough; consular officers are paying out of pocket to visit ill or incarcerated American citizens; shipments with needed medications aren’t arriving; bills aren’t being paid; and critical U.S. business opportunities are being lost as competitors fill the void.

At the same time, some diplomats overseas are working unpaid overtime to support the visits of high-level officials who are leaving Washington while the government is closed.

“We had a motor pool vehicle break down outside of town while returning from supporting [a high-level VIP visit] and were told that we would have to pay out of pocket to tow it back to the embassy,” a diplomat told us.

At the other end of the spectrum, meetings and trainings are being canceled or postponed. China and others are stepping in to fill the gap and using our absence to chip away at U.S. credibility.

Not to mention the human toll the uncertainty and stress take on the workforce.

“The decision not to pay us is cruel, calculated, and demoralizing,” another diplomat told us. “We do work apolitically and are forced into political games not of our making.”

Yet another stated, “The greatest effect this shutdown has on my work is making me reconsider if I can even do it. I joined the Foreign Service because I believe in democracy and diplomacy... We cannot lose much more before everyone begins to lose everything, and we will likely not know where the breaking point is until we've already hit it.”

The longer this shutdown drags on, the weaker America becomes economically, diplomatically, and morally. We are ceding ground to competitors, compromising the safety of our people, and undermining the professionals who defend American interests every day.

AFSA calls on Congress and the administration to end this shutdown immediately and pay every federal employee, including backpay.

Our diplomats will keep showing up for the American people. It’s time for our leaders to do the same.

To read first-person anecdotes of the shutdown's impact on diplomats and their work, click here.

The American Foreign Service Association (AFSA) is the professional association and labor union of the men and women of the United States Foreign Service.