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Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla (Photo: Yonhap News Agency) |
[Alpha Biz= Paul Lee] Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and the world’s richest person, has offered to pay Transportation Security Administration (TSA) workers who are currently going unpaid amid the ongoing U.S. government shutdown.
According to Business Insider and other media reports on March 21 (local time), Musk said on social media platform X that he would “like to offer to pay the salaries of TSA employees” during the budget impasse, which has negatively affected the lives of many Americans.
The shutdown stems from a prolonged budget standoff, as Democrats have delayed passage of funding for the Department of Homeland Security in protest against the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement policies. As a result, TSA employees—who fall under the department—have continued working without pay.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said TSA workers are expected to miss a second paycheck on March 27. Under federal law, employees required to work during a shutdown will receive back pay once funding is restored.
The situation has already begun to impact airport operations nationwide. Since the shutdown, 366 TSA workers have resigned, and absenteeism has reached around 10%, leading to staffing shortages and longer security screening times. Authorities warned that smaller airports could face temporary closures if conditions worsen.
Approximately 50,000 TSA employees are currently working without pay, with an average annual salary of about $61,000.
However, questions remain over whether Musk can legally fund federal employee wages through private means. Philip Candreva, a professor at Duke University, told USA Today that any funds donated to the federal government must go through the U.S. Treasury, and no individual agency has the authority to directly access such funds.
Meanwhile, Forbes recently ranked Musk as the world’s richest billionaire for the second consecutive year, estimating his net worth at $839 billion—marking the first time it has exceeded $800 billion, largely driven by his Tesla holdings.
알파경제 Paul Lee 특파원(hoondork1977@alphabiz.co.kr)
