United States Begins Sending Nuclear Workers Home as Government Shutdown Deepens

The United States government’s prolonged shutdown has entered its fourth week, forcing the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA)—the agency responsible for maintaining and safeguarding America’s nuclear arsenal—to begin placing a majority of its workforce on unpaid leave, officials confirmed on Monday.

According to a Department of Energy spokesperson, approximately 1,400 NNSA federal employees were due to receive furlough notices, while around 400 essential staff would continue working to ensure the protection of critical property and human safety.

“Due to the Democrat shutdown, approximately 1,400 NNSA federal employees will be furloughed as of today, 20th October, and nearly 400 will continue to work,”
said the Department of Energy in a formal statement.

Scope of the Shutdown and Affected Facilities

The NNSA oversees around 60,000 contractors across the United States and is tasked with designing, manufacturing, servicing, and securing nuclear weapons.
The U.S. nuclear stockpile includes 5,177 warheads, of which approximately 1,770 are deployed, according to the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, a global security research organisation.

CNN reported that the furloughs are initially hitting critical assembly and maintenance sites, threatening to slow nuclear safety operations and weapons upkeep.

The shutdown—now lasting 20 days—has become the longest full government shutdown in U.S. history.
President Donald Trump continues to exert pressure on Democratic lawmakers to support a Republican-backed funding measure to reopen the government.

“We’re hoping the Democrats become much less deranged and that we’ll get the vote soon. I hear they’re starting to feel that way, too,”
Trump said from the White House on Monday.

Kevin Hassett, Director of the White House National Economic Council, told CNBC that he expected the shutdown to end “sometime this week,” though he warned that “stronger measures” might be taken if Democrats continued to resist negotiations.

Democrats have maintained that their support for reopening the government depends on the renewal of expiring healthcare subsidies for 24 million Americans.

A Senate vote on Monday evening—marking the 11th failed attempt—again blocked a House-passed resolution to resume government funding through late November.

House Speaker Mike Johnson has kept the House closed since 19th September, vowing not to reopen until a full funding agreement is reached.

“Every day that the government is shut down, it is a danger to the American people,”
Johnson said, warning that delays in nuclear operations could undermine the United States’ position as “the last great superpower.”

The shutdown has already begun to hit ordinary citizens and federal workers.
Employees paid on a biweekly schedule are expected to miss their entire pay this Thursday for the first time, while military pay is also at risk.

The Senate is considering legislation this week to ensure military and federal employees continue receiving pay, though Democratic support remains uncertain.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries warned of further financial strain if healthcare subsidies are not renewed: “In Georgia, Virginia, and Maryland, people are now finding out that their health insurance premiums are about to increase—by more than $2,000 per month in some cases, or $24,000 per year. No one can afford those types of increases.”

Political analysts warn that the continued impasse poses not only economic risks but also national security vulnerabilities, particularly within critical sectors like energy, defence, and nuclear management.

The Department of Energy has not confirmed when full operations might resume, but officials acknowledged a growing backlog in safety and weapons management tasks at key nuclear facilities.

As the shutdown persists, fears are mounting that the U.S. could fall behind rivals in maintaining its strategic deterrence capabilities—a scenario Speaker Johnson called a “very serious threat to the nation’s security.”

With nearly three weeks of halted operations, Washington remains mired in political stalemate—its nuclear guardians now among the latest casualties of a deeply divided government.