IRS Employees Are Missing Work, May Hamper Tax Season

Hundreds of IRS workers are skipping work during the partial government shutdown, taking advantage of a part of their union contract that allows them to miss work if a shutdown causes them “hardship,” while other employees are bowing out of work in a coordinated effort to protest the ongoing shutdown, union leaders said.

The absences could have a substantial impact on tax season, which kicks off at the end of January. The Trump administration last week recalled some 46,000 workers from furlough – most of whom will be required to work unpaid – to process tax filings and refunds in an effort to lessen the shutdown’s impact on citizens’ lives. But the absences could delay those refunds.

More and more workers are calling out because of “hardship” incurred by the shutdown, according to The Washington Post, which first reported the absences. Federal workers stand to miss their second paycheck soon, and stories have emerged of employees taking side jobs, selling possessions and setting up online fundraisers to try to make ends meet while not being paid.

A section in the IRS workers’ union contract gives them permission to miss work during a shutdown because of hardships like gas cost or child care fees, the Post reported.

The National Treasury Employees Union, which represents the IRS workers, was not able to give the Post a count of absent workers, but reporters found that the absences were widespread: A union chapter president in Kansas City said as many as 75 percent of the roughly 4,000 furloughed workers in the area could qualify for hardship leave, and another union chapter president in Andover, Massachusetts, said more than 100 employees didn’t plan on coming to work, citing the hardship exemption. Tony Reardon, the union’s national president, told the Post that staffers from California to Atlanta wouldn’t be showing up for work, citing financial difficulties.

Those summoned back to work without pay are also those most likely to feel the pinch of one or two missed paychecks. IRS workers called back to work make between $25,800 and $51,000 a year, depending on seniority, according to the Post.