[freeflight]

> Anyone affected working on the weekend knew that they wouldn't get paid.

They knew that, for certain, only after Friday midnight. It's not that far-fetched to assume that most people working that Saturday would already be asleep during that time and just showed up at their work on Saturday like it's business as usual.

[SiempreViernes]

Gotta be a weird person not to check the outcome on the news before going to work since they've been plenty forewarned.

I guess someone living close by, that woke up late and doesn't have radio, tv, or internet available for a quick check could plausibly skip over calling someone to find out before jogging over.

[freeflight]

Weird persons exist, just like persons who don't include checking news during their breakfast routine, then there's also a subset of weird people who might just like doing their job and don't mind working that one Saturday without pay.

[rlanday]

It’s not legal for non-essential federal workers to choose to work for free:

http://www.slate.com/blogs/moneybox/2013/10/01/federal_worke...

[gojomo]

That looks to be a recent interpretation of an 1884 law that could be reversed by the current administration, if it wanted to make shutdowns smoother, as easily as it was adopted in the 1970s.

(And, if there were a general consensus/expectation within an agency/administration, it could be a 'dead letter' law even without explicit re-interpretation. OK, so you "break the law" by answering an email, sending an official tweet, or staffing a booth during the shutdown. Which of your fellow federal employees is going to prosecute you once the shutdown ends?)

[the_watcher]

They may exist, but they'd figure it out pretty quickly when they can't get into the office or access any job-related systems (which is what happens during a shutdown).