Furloughed Ft. McCoy civilian employees return to work

SPARTA, WI — 900 civilian employees at Fort McCoy that have been furloughed because of the government shutdown are back at work.

The employees were notified Monday they could return to work with most reporting Tuesday.

The Defense Department ended the furloughs after reviewing the Pay Our Military Act. They determined the law applied not just to military members, but also the people who support military readiness.

“When you take a look at Ft. McCoy, our primary mission is serving as a training site for reserve component soldiers, so when you’re talking about the readiness of the force, the people that work at Ft. McCoy all have a direct link to preserving the readiness of the force,” said Linda Fournier from Ft. McCoy’s Public Affairs.

While they are back at work, it’s unclear if they are being paid for it. The employees are being told to brace for the chance they might have a smaller paycheck next week.

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