UFCW International President Marc Perrone called attention to the government shutdown’s impact on America’s 16 million retail workers and the broader economy in a statement issued on Jan. 18.
Perrone’s statement reads as follows:
“Every day the government shutdown drags on, 800,000 federal workers continue to be locked out of their job or forced to work without pay. But this wasteful shutdown is also threatening the 16 million American workers who help power our country’s $2.6 trillion retail sector and the broader economy.
“When Republicans shut down the government in 2013, retail sales from furloughed workers dropped seven percent and the economy lost $2 billion in productivity. About one in 10 Americans are employed in the retail industry and the longer the current shutdown continues, the harder hit these workers and our economy will be.
“It’s high time for President Trump and Congress to stop playing politics with our economy and American workers and finally end this reckless government shutdown.”