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Washington, D.C. —Two of the nation’s top unions of federal employees have joined together to urge all their members to call representatives and senators tomorrow, April 5, and voice their strenuous opposition to a government shutdown and to severe budget cuts.

‘Federal Employee Call-In Day’ is jointly sponsored by the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) and the National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE).

In a message to union members, NTEU President Colleen M. Kelley emphasized the current continuing resolution funding the government expires at 11:59 p.m. on Friday, April 8, and unless the House and Senate approve a budget for the remainder of fiscal 2011, which runs through Sept. 30, a government shutdown will ensue.

“I believe that a two-minute phone call from a constituent who is a federal employee, explaining to an elected official why it is vital not only to continue government operations but to fund them adequately for the good of the country can change the debate on this issue,” President Kelley said.

As part of the effort, federal employees will be asked to urge members of their family and their friends to make similar calls—also on Tuesday, April 5. The unions will promote the effort through member communications, web sites and social media and invite all federal employee groups to join in. A web page with all the call-in information is can be found at www.nteu.org/call-in-day.

Everyone has a stake in keeping the government open, the union leaders said. “Furloughing hundreds of thousands of federal workers would be devastating to local economies,” said NFFE President William R. Dougan. “With 85 percent of the federal workforce living outside of Washington, D.C., communities across America would feel the pinch of a government shutdown.”

In addition to urging a common-sense budget agreement, President Kelley said federal employees will emphasize to representatives and senators that draconian budget cuts contained in legislation advanced by the House majority and approved by the House earlier this year would result in dramatic negative impacts on the ability of agencies to deliver services to the public.

The NTEU leader said such damage would be widespread, since federal employees perform a broad range of services for the public—including protecting our nation’s borders; processing Social Security claims; keeping our food and water safe; protecting our environment; and much more. “The simple fact is,” she said, “Americans rely on the work of federal employees every day in ways that directly impact their lives.”

“Government shutdowns are a lose-lose proposition for federal employees and the American taxpayer,” said President Dougan. “Federal employees and their families must find a way to make ends meet without a paycheck, while taxpayers are forced to foot the bill for millions of dollars in lost productivity. It is time for Congress to do what we sent them to Washington to do, and deliver a bill that funds the critical federal services the American people rely on.”

Kelley further stated, “NTEU and NFFE are calling on every one of our members to tell Congress to reject the extreme budget cuts in H.R. 1 and come to a reasonable compromise,” Kelley said. “We want them to tell officials to do their jobs so employees can continue to do their jobs.”

NTEU and NFFE together represent 260,000 federal employees at agencies and departments across the government.