Letter: Uncertainty of employment

In terms of the federal government shutdown, it should be noted that the federal employees typically get back-pay, the contractors typically get nothing.

I worked at the Hanford site for several years as an industrial hygienist and lived in Richland since 2004.

In my 30-year career, I lost an income three times because of a government shutdown, with no back-pay.

All the news reports said that 800,000 federal employees would be out of work.

That affects the contractors the greatest of all.

Within the Tri-Cities, DOE is the major player within the federal government.

DOE employs the highest number of contractors per government agency.

I write this not to insult any federal employee, but to enlighten the affect on contract workers.

I now work in Vancouver because of the uncertainty of continual employment at the Hanford site.

This story was originally published January 24, 2018 at 6:04 PM with the headline "Letter: Uncertainty of employment."