What would you do?

[shipwrecked]

Please avoid the political argument about who is right/wrong/democrat or republican.

A honest thought and question below.

I am celebrating my 20th year in the coast guard. 20 years of service, 20 years of deployments, being away from the family on holidays, on duty, transfers and now potentially not getting a paycheck on the1st.

If you worked for an employer and was obligated by devotion to duty, and the uniform code of military justice and the oath “I will support and defend the constitution of the United States......” and that employer requires you to come to work when you are not guaranteed your paycheck. What would you do if the civilian employer did that to you?

Honestly.

Being paid back eventually is not good enough.

If you are unaware we are not getting a paycheck then please look it up. DOD and VA got funding but we didn’t.

Damn right I’m angry and fired up.

[slick4x4]

That's a question you'll have to answer for yourself
As self employed ... Several times worked a year & lost money
Other times, life absolutly couldn't be better
No retirement plan.. no benefits , no insurance though....

All jobs have perks ... all have down sides
Just have to decide on your own what you can deal with

[skidoorulz]

As you said you took an oath. With 20 years in service you should have money put away to get you through a dry spell. Civilian life and work is a whole different story. Most do not sign contracts and no one can require you to come to work without pay, so if you are promised a paycheck after the dry spell you can chose to stay in hopes of getting back pay or leave and find another job. You don't have that choice. You will get back pay. Anyone in civilian life if this was to happen to them they would not get back pay they would just be laid off until better times come around. You also need to look at what you have when you retire. You obviously have made service your career. You will receive lifetime medical care, you will receive a monthly retirement income greater than many people will get after spending 50 years working. Assuming you are contemplating retiring soon, you have plenty of time to work another career with fed or state or local government given preferential hiring for vets and can work long enough to draw another pension from that entity. Life is a choice. You chose military service (Thank you) Military people are not the only ones who spend months away from family members. As an example my dad was a truck driver. He spent months at a time on the road coast to coast. Probably saw him 5 Christmases in 18 years. Saw him a few days every 90 days or so. He chose to do this job and it is what put food on the table. The last 20 years this has happened to you 4 or 5 times. Every administration has done this since Ford with the exception of G W Bush. Were you angry and fired up then or are you angry and fired up now because of who is in office? But to answer your question as to what I would do? If I was in the military I would suck it up and do my job. If I was in government employment and was required to come in I would suck it up and do my job knowing I would get paid eventually. If I was a non essential government employee and was told to stay home I would stay home for as long as I was told to and would come back to work when I was told to and not expect pay for the days I did not work and then I would suck it up and do my job. If I was in the private workforce and was not getting paid for my work I would suck it up and go find a different job.

[6166 Junkyard Dog]

really do not want to get into politics BUT April you should be Damn right I’m angry and fired up. BUT NOT AT THE LEADER

protect our borders with the wall

some IDIOTS DO NOT KNOW THE MEANING OF LEGAL OR ILLEGAL when it comes to this matter

you know the news media DOES NOT TELL YOU THE WHOLE STORY

one example, cause we go close to the border and personally talk to the border patrol and the stories they tell you will wake you up, BIGGEST ONE IS That they where informed you kill one of ours, WE WILL SEND 10 OF YOURS BACK IN BODY BAGS, WAKE UP

AND BIGGEST OF ALL , Who do you think is paying for all of the medical/food/ housing,,, WE ARE AND I would like to have just a small fraction of the money spent this past year wasted by the govt. on just cause one side does not like the other side so WAKE UP AMERICA

this is just my and do not want to get into the Politics

[ThinLizzy13]

The government seems to be the only employer you can’t sue for breach of contract. They’re also the ones in charge of enforcement; pretty nice setup for them.
It’s just part of working for the government I suppose. They occasionally screw their workers, but the benefits are great and the workers are largely insulated from the effects of market forces.

[04sd]

Skidoorulz said it very well.

[6166 Junkyard Dog]

lot of good responses,, Pat I agree being self employed has it's tolls.. most people do not see it, No retirement plan.. no benefits , no insurance though, work many long hours, Pat our day starts many times 6.00 AM till whenever, always behind , when everybody is on vacation having a good time at the beach or mountains having cookouts we are slaving under a truck ,and Vacations only real time is past years have been Slickstock other wise it's 365 days a year and I enjoy it at times cause of what I love, if your not happy with what you do or Management then it's time to move on . I also agree with skidoorulz as well, especially with his dad,, me and Kathy did that for many years as well,, Our kids really did not see us during school days since on the road, 4-5 trips a month from NC to Calif. year after year, about every 2 years, 500,000 +miles on a truck, some trips 4-5 day turn around which = 6500 miles in that short time out and back home, running a semi at times well over 100mph at any given time, Why cause we loved it but after 20+ years it got old, kept food on table and food on every bodies as well since hauling produce and there was different times worked for several doing this and TRUCK came first with times not getting enough money to pay some bills, But we did keep on going cause better times where always on the horizon, not sure when though ? so when we got in that truck loaded going west or coming back with produce we where committed to do it with nothing to get in our way of not doing a 100% job, many years ago with my uncle and dad with trucks went without paychecks, just so drivers got a paycheck, ALL Trucks where first so when repairs where needed it comes first and that's the way I was brought up, Truck 1st, wife 2nd, rest 3rd and on,, over the years we had to suck it up as well, Just another

[Alan Mclennan]

I think I'd be peeved as well, but I'm sure you'll get paid at the end of it.
we as a small Plumbing company had many short periods where we didn't have work
for the boys. we would still pay them and get them to do work around the yard and a like
so it was still earned money, one time it went on for 4 months, almost put us under, but we survived.. just

[oldsmiley]

I too don't get into politics. My wife worked for EPA for 39 years, and for the last 8 of them, she came home crying nearly every day. I never thought she'd live long enough to retire, I thought the stress would kill her first. Towards the end, people can get pretty mean.There's at least 13 people in my church right now going through the same thing that she did. It happens, and it's like onbody cares.

On the other hand, look at, and understand the job market. Good jobs aren't easy to get, and if you DO get one, look out. I have a friend who (like you're thinking of doing) left the Army after 12 years to get into public work. I warned him the same way, that it's a lot different on the outside.
He got one and comes in gung-ho like he did in the Army and was going to really impress his employer, because he's always been a hard worker. You know, "give your boss a full 8 hours of work for the pay". And he did just that, but he was a threat to his co-workers. He did so well himself, that they were afraid of getting laid off or fired. Then it got to the place where every thing that went wrong was blamed on him by his co-workers. Like, "we weren't having all the problems and mistakes until you hired him" kind of thing, so he was let go in less that 40 days. I have a friend who got out of the Marines early and the exact same thing happened to him. In other words you can't come in and shake up the apple cart...... it makes everyone nervous.

My friend from the Army has had 11 jobs in the last year, and just lost his last one 2 weeks ago. With a sickly wife and 4 kids, that's not good (especially just before Christmas).

I'm like the rest April, it's your decision, but look at both worlds. I've always found it easier to get a job while you were still employed, than when you had just left a job. Some people just never ask, but speculate in their own mind why you are all of a sudden jobless and may not hire you. I know someone out there will be Super glad to get a worker like you.

Praying you make a decision that will be beneficial.

[shipwrecked]

You guys are right. I have failed to properly prepare for events like this. I have had a cushy life but by far not comfortable. I have been through a ton and in the past two years fallen into harder financial straights than ever before. Moving to VA was tough and then the hits kept coming.

I am covered financially till mid February then I will really be worried. No nest egg. I put spare money into my home just this past November and two weeks ago with buying flooring to replace the nasty carpet. I took a chance and spent the money and now I feel a strain.

I should take a page from my grandparents book. Save like a Great Depression is coming.
My bills should be debt free by April 2020 with exception of my house mortgage. I haven’t taken a vacation in many years as I have been putting spare change toward the f100 or I used it on the house.

I’m expecting a promotion in a few months. That promotion requires I serve 3 more years in that paygrade to get that retirement pay.

I am ina better state of finances than my coworkers I see.

[slick4x4]

Even though you might not think it
You are still a young pup
Best time to start saving was yesterday...
But today is what you have...
So don't wait till tomorrow...

Dad & mom got married in 48
Mom said he started making her put $10 a month away
No matter HOW MUCH money they owed

As the years went by... little by little they would save even more

At least you are not in denial
You have already identified the problem ... too much spend.. not enough save
You will overcome this obstacle with just a bit of life change

[9Fingers]

This might not be everyone's cup of tea.

I stumbled on to him on a local radio station, then began listening to the podcasts during drive to and from work, after the radio station changed format. We never bought any kit or products, just listened, looked online at the steps, and concepts.

My wife got on board, we put the budget on paper, the credit cards through the shredder, and implemented the plan.

All I can say is that we made decisions to change our lifestyle and this systematic approach worked for us.

https://www.daveramsey.com/get-started/debt

[shipwrecked]

Late last night we got word we will get paid for the 1st, but come the 15 we again may be in this battle. It just identified we have a huge problem on our hands.

Not that I am laughing all this off, but this did strike me. I know exactly what Clark grizwold felt now.

I’m okay for about 3 pay periods, then I’m going to worry!

[ThinLizzy13]

Not sure whose telling you about the pay delay; but I was under the impression all military funding was approved in September when congress approved and the president signed the 2019 Defense Budget?

[charliemccraney]

It is evident that this has become a tool that politicians use to try to get their way. It's going to happen again and again, probably getting worse and worse until we the people wake up.

I do my job for money. If the money stops flowing, I'm out. I don't think that should matter whether it's a private or government job. There may be a little more red tape to leave yours and the benefits are something to consider but benefits don't necessarily help you now, to keep your house and car and food on the table, etc. So, it does boil down to "is it worth it to you?"
And build that nest egg for the next time. There will be a next time until we elect leaders who actually care about the average person.

[shipwrecked]

Not sure whose telling you about the pay delay; but I was under the impression all military funding was approved in September when congress approved and the president signed the 2019 Defense Budget?

All DOD was approved. Depart,ent of homeland security (which the CG falls under due to our ability to enforce international laws) was not included.

Since the 1960s the CG was in department of transportation. Before that, department of treasury. Since March 1 2003; we have been DHS. Im still entitled to same pay and benefits as DOD, my boss just answers to DHS. We have been a branch of service long before others, and at one point our ancestors in the Revenue cutter Service and lifesaving service were only military in the USA when the navy and army were disbanded after the revolutionary war.

We got funded to pay us for the 1st. But now we are back at this “are we being paid the 15th” crap.

.

[ThinLizzy13]

Ah my bad. I forgot you were Coast Guard. I was thinking navy for some reason.

[Alan Mclennan]

Hey April, I didn't quite get if you are still expected to go to work each day or not, and not get paid till a later date
we are a day ahead here, but still a bit slow sometimes !

[shipwrecked]

Yes expected to work and might get my pay. Might get pay doesn’t pay my house bill.

[6166 Junkyard Dog]

I’m angry and fired up on this,
Everybody can complain about this not getting paid etc.. and even one person here says
" There will be a next time until we elect leaders who actually care about the average person"
so explain to me if these people are for us, THEN WHY ??? The ones that are not coming to a agreement ARE STILL GETIING THEIR PAYCHECKS ???????? As long they are still getting paid they are not going to do a damn thing, the President has been giving his paycheck away,, did see some leaders giving to charity but they should give back to some of the govt. workers not getting paid so in my eyes since they put blame on maybe 1 person ?. it goes a lot deeper,