With paychecks frozen and bills piling up, federal workers and local leaders gathered downtown Monday to demand an end to the government shutdown — a standoff they say is punishing families and paralyzing essential services across Arizona.

U.S. Rep. Adelita Grijalva and District 5 Pima County Supervisor Andrés Cano stood alongside members of the American Federation of Government Employees Local 2391 at the rally. AFGE is the largest federal employee union, representing 820,000 federal government workers.

“This government shutdown is not an accident. It is a choice,” Grijalva said. “We owe you stability and we owe you a government that works.”

Grijalva said she had written to House Speaker Mike Johnson urging him to end the shutdown. She also asked to be provided a date for her swearing-in, saying she has been unable to hire staff or open district offices.

Johnson was asked Tuesday about the delay and whether it was related to Grijalva’s statement that she plans to join a legislative effort to force a House vote on a bill requiring the Department of Justice to release case files on the late financier Jeffrey Epstein.

“It has nothing to do with that at all,” he said. “We’ll schedule it, I guess, as soon as she wants.”

Johnson’s office later said he meant the swearing-in would take place when Congress is back in session.

It’s possible Grijalva could be sworn in during one of the House’s pro forma sessions, with the next one set for Wednesday, Oct. 15.

AFGE Local 2391 Vice President Omar Algeciras said about 34,460 federal employees are working without pay in Arizona.

“Families, wondering how to pay rent, buy groceries or cover gas to get to work,” said Algeciras.

AFGE Local 2391 President Aliyah Levin was working in the Office of Federal Contract and Compliance Programs until the recent shutdown. She said federal workers are required to be nonpolitical and nonpartisan but feel they are being used in this situation.

“American workers are being left behind. The system doesn't work for Americans anymore,” she said. “These efforts might appear futile, but they’re just one stopping point on efforts to turn the tide and fix what’s broken.”

During the last government shutdown in 2018, the U.S. economy lost around $11 billion.

Amid the ongoing shutdown, the Social Security Administration has cut its staff by 12%, according to Algeciras. He said the public can also expect longer wait times for veterans’ benefits, slower food safety inspections and increased airport security delays.

“Shutdowns only make things worse,” he said.

AFGE representatives also advocated for the passage of H.R. 2550, a bill aimed at protecting workers’ rights and union agreements from executive orders or other actions that alter existing contracts.

The rally was followed by a march down Alameda Street and back to El Presidio Plaza.

Emma Diaz is a Universtiy of Arizona alum and freelance journalist based in Tucson.

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