As the US government shutdown finally ended after 43 days, Kristi Noem, Secretary of Homeland Security, made a significant announcement. She said that the TSA employees who continued to work throughout the shutdown will be given $10,000 bonus checks.
Noem further mentioned that TSA agents and Transportation Security Officers “who served with exemplary service” will also be given backup pay so that they could deal with the loss of money that they suffered during the shutdown.
Noem explained the reason behind these workers getting rewarded. While not exactly confirming the number of employees who would be receiving these benefits, she mentioned that these are the people who showed up even during the shutdown and took care of the services. Noem said, “These employees stepped up, took on extra work, and served Americans during a very difficult time.”
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Speaking at the George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston, Texas, Noem handed over the checks to almost two dozen agents. Noem also said that DHS will further note the names of employees who filled in for their colleagues during the shutdown and kept the wheels running, and they will also be rewarded.
Noem also mentioned that the funds for these bonuses are coming from leftover taxpayers money, and no new government funding was allocated to pay these employees.
After the shutdown began on October 1, a number of TSA employees called in sick and started looking for other jobs as paying the bills without getting paid proved to be a major problem for the TSA agents and their families. As a result, the US air travel situation got quite bad. Passengers suffered long queues at airports because fewer employees were working.
However, some of the employees continued to come for work and also worked the hours of other absent employees so that services could continue. It is these employees who would be rewarded, as Noem said.
After the longest government shutdown in American history, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem handed $10,000 to some TSA agents in Houston who worked through the government shutdown. It comes after many relied on food banks in the airport. @rachelvscott has more. https://t.co/GL6rLr76AE pic.twitter.com/wxMlNa5qLT
— World News Tonight (@ABCWorldNews) November 14, 2025
President Donald Trump had also suggested that air traffic controllers who kept working and did not take off during the shutdown should also be given such monetary rewards. However, it is still not confirmed if these kinds of payments have been officially approved.
While the reopening of the government essentially means that federal services will now run smoothly, the Trump administration is now dealing with renewed scrutiny over the Epstein files. There have long been speculations of Trump’s association with the now late offender, and while the President and his administration continue denying any such thing, new emerging records show otherwise.
With the release of a set of new emails, Trump’s relationship with Epstein has again come to the forefront. Moreover, the fact that the Epstein files have yet to be disclosed despite the promise being made by Pam Bondi earlier this year is causing further meltdown and criticism within the MAGA base and the Democrats.
While paying federal workers bonus payments for days worked during the shutdown is definitely a good idea, the general population is not really forgetting about the Epstein files, and it would be interesting to see how the government handles the issue now.
