It’s been a cold winter for many former Trump administration employees who say they can’t find new jobs, haven’t been paid for their remaining vacation time, and can’t even apply for unemployment because no one has sent them the required paperwork.
According to a new report from Politico, many of the defunct administration’s workers were relying on vacation payouts and unemployment to get through the next weeks or months, because jobs are scarce for Trump alumni.
Job hunting was tough for Trump appointees even before the administration ended on January 20. After Trump lost the presidential election in November, many White House employees began quietly looking for other jobs, but got an icy reception.
“A lot of people are freaking out,” one appointee told the publication.
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Many of the defunct administration’s workers were relying on vacation payouts and unemployment to get through the next weeks or months, because jobs are scarce for Trump alumni in the newly Democrat-dominated capital.
“I’m sitting here going, how do I pay my rent? How do I pay my cell phone bill?” one former employee of the Department of Commerce said.
“They really have a scarlet letter, particularly the most visible ones,” Hilary Rosen, vice-chair of the political consulting firm SKDK, told reporters. “It’s not worth it to companies to bring on people with a bad reputation to represent the company in any way if it’s going to create employee revolt.”
In the meantime, many former aides and officials were hoping to at least receive unemployment, but even that has become a problem. At least three former Commerce employees told Politico they had yet to receive an SF-50 forms, which are needed to apply for unemployment benefits.
“I have enough money to make it a month, but when rent’s due next month, what happens then? Rent in DC isn’t cheap,” one former Trump employee said.
The vacation payouts owed to some of the appointees are also significant. One ex-official at the Department of Homeland Security said he was owed $15,000, while another said the money owed to her amounted to three months of her former salary.
Former employees of the Barack Obama administration told Politico they did not have the same experience when that presidency ended.
“I don’t remember it being a problem,” a former Obama Commerce official said. “I don’t remember us having any issues.”
