The shutdown, he said, has left the laboratory unable to meet its obligations under research agreements.

“Many of these cooperators have put money and time into projects we are working on together,” he said. “Right now we are unable to hold up our end of these agreements and are not meeting our deadlines for developing scientific information to help them and the American public.”

He called the impact on employees “huge.”

He said some have found themselves in financial straits. For example, one scientist has tapped his 401(k) to make ends meet, he said. Another employee has a spouse who also works a federal job. The couple, deprived of two paychecks, is struggling with a new mortgage and a young child.

He also said that a Ph.D. student at the lab who is supposed to graduate in May could be forced to delay her graduation because she can’t pay her tuition.

“These are hardworking, educated, solid citizens that want to do their jobs,” he said. “They did not go on strike, they are not poor performers, the only thing stopping them from doing their job is that the United States government has not passed a budget for 2019!”

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