Furlough Freebies

Lawmakers have yet to pass a bill to fund U.S. government operations for the fiscal year that started October 1 that President Obama will sign, and that means that nearly 800,000 government workers throughout the country are at home without pay. As both the House and Senate chambers are eyeing weekend sessions, there are no real signs that a deal will be made. Businesses however – both inside and outside the Beltway – are luring customers and media attention by offering discounts or freebies to federal workers who just need to show their government ID. Offerings include free cups of coffee, sandwiches, movies passes, oil changes, and haircuts. The Hyundai Motor Company is allowing federal employees who own Hyundais to defer their car payments for as long as the shutdown keeps them out of work and in Hawaii, a skydiving company is offering free jumps to furloughed federal workers. It is only the beginning of the government shutdown and for at least one D.C. area business the goodwill proved too costly and they had to end their program due to overwhelming demand.