Germany secures wages of 12,000 local US Army employees amid budget crisis in Washington

The German government will guarantee that 12,000 local workers employed by the US army in Germany still receive their salaries, following fears sparked by the ongoing budget crisis in Washington.

The US government shutdown started on 1 October, after the Republicans and Democrats failed to agree to a new budget.

As a result of the closure, federal workers in the US have been placed on forced leave.

Local employees of the US armed forces in Germany had worried that they might also not receive their pay, but the German finance ministry confirmed this week that it would step in.

The move came in response to demands from the Verdi trade union and Alexander Schweitzer, an SPD politician who governs the state of Rhineland-Palatinate, where around 6,300 civilian employees of the US army work.

Verdi had called on the federal government to take over the payment of October salaries in an emergency, given that salary shortfalls are not allowed under German law.

"I would like to thank the federal minister of finance for his swift and decisive action," Schweitzer said.

"I was in Washington with a delegation when the shutdown was announced. The fact that this could have an impact on the continued payment of wages for civilian employees at the US military bases in Rhineland-Palatinate is a new development," he noted.

The US is obliged to start repayments as soon as the budget dispute has been resolved, according to a press release issued by Schweitzer.