Roughly 46,000 full-time U.S. military members are without pay during the federal government shutdown despite President Donald Trump's push to pay active duty troops.
The impacted service members, known as dual-status technicians, are full-time employees of the National Guard and other military reserve units who under federal law must wear their military uniform to work daily, must maintain part-time military uniform to work daily, must maintain part-time military membership and must meet military standards. According to the fiscal 2025 defense policy bill, the military currently has roughly 46,000 dual-status technician positions distributed across crucial functions like helicopter and plane maintenance, technology support, weapons repair and administrative support for isolated units.
The catch? Dual-status technicians are, technically speaking, civilian employees of the Defense Department despite the inherently military aspects of their jobs. And during the ongoing federal government shutdown, the Pentagon's civilian employees are going without pay, though many of them (including most technicians) must stay on the job due to the vital national security nature of their work.
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