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Washington, D.C.—The National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) urged Congress today to speedily resolve the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) “funding impasse” and avoid a shutdown beginning Feb. 28.

In a letter sent to lawmakers as Congress adjourned for the Presidents Day recess, NTEU National President Colleen M. Kelley noted that tens of thousands of DHS employees would be forced to report to duty during a government shutdown without knowing when they will be paid for their work, including many NTEU-represented Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Officers.

The union represents 25,000 DHS employees including CBP Officers and trade enforcement specialists stationed at 329 land, sea and air ports of entry.

“No one wins if this political standoff continues. The American people do not win if the Department of Homeland Security is shut down, even if its employees continue to work,” the NTEU leader said.

Training for new CBP Officers will be suspended for the duration of the shutdown. New personnel also will not be hired, worsening the chronic staffing shortages at the ports of entry and lengthening wait times for incoming cargo and travelers, Kelley wrote.

“Employees who continue to work during a shutdown will be working without pay even though their family’s financial obligations continue. And employees who are furloughed may ultimately lose pay they need and are counting on,” the NTEU leader wrote. “This will be the second shutdown for DHS employees in less than two years and we know from the prior shutdown that working without pay places an extreme burden on DHS employees and their families.”

She appealed to Congress to pass a full-year DHS budget bill for fiscal year 2015 before current funding runs out on Feb. 27 to “allow DHS to carry out its critical mission with transparent and explicit direction from Congress.” She continued, “DHS would be able to hire staff and initiate new projects to ensure our national security.”

NTEU, the nation’s largest independent federal-employee union, represents 150,000 employees in 31 agencies and departments.