(MENAFN) President Donald Trump on Tuesday signaled that certain furloughed federal employees may not receive back pay once the government resumes operations, escalating uncertainty for hundreds of thousands of workers impacted by the ongoing shutdown.

“It depends on who we’re talking about,” Trump stated during remarks in the Oval Office. “I can tell you this, the Democrats have put a lot of people in great risk and jeopardy, but it really depends on who you’re talking about.”

The president added: “But for the most part, we’re going to take care of our people. There are some people that really don’t deserve to be taken care of, and we will take care of them in a different way.”

Trump did not specify which categories of furloughed workers could be excluded from receiving back pay. His comments follow a report earlier Tuesday from media, which cited a draft White House memo indicating that compensation for furloughed employees is not guaranteed during the current funding lapse.

As the blame game intensified in Washington, Trump pointed the finger at Democrats, while Democratic leaders pushed responsibility back on Republicans.

“The Republicans shut down the government instead of fixing health care for Americans across this country,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a post on X.

This shutdown reignites debate over federal worker compensation. After a record-setting 35-day shutdown that concluded in January 2019, Trump signed legislation mandating back pay for federal employees impacted by future government closures. Prior to that law, Congress typically approved retroactive pay only after funding bills were passed.

According to a recent estimate by the Congressional Budget Office, about 750,000 federal employees are expected to be furloughed this time.

Essential personnel — including air traffic controllers and federal law enforcement — are still reporting to work but without pay until funding is restored.

On Monday, U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned the shutdown was placing additional strain on an already overstretched aviation workforce, noting increasing pressure on air traffic controllers.

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