PayPal offering cash advances to unpaid federal workers

PayPal will provide up to $25 million in interest-free cash advances to help federal workers going without pay during the partial government shutdown make ends meet.

“Starting immediately, PayPal is offering an interest-free cash advance up to $500, the equivalent of one week’s take home, for any existing or new PayPal Credit customers who are federal employees and are struggling to make ends meet,” PayPal CEO Dan Schulman said in a USA Today op-ed announcing the effort on Friday.

“We are committing to fund up to $25 million of interest-free cash advances to help federal government employees pay for food, gas and other everyday necessities,” he continued. “We hope that this program can provide some relief and certainty in uncertain times.”

Nearly 800,000 federal workers have either been furloughed or are working without pay as a result of the record-long shutdown, which is now in its 28th day. The workers missed their first full paycheck last Friday after previously receiving a slightly reduced check in late December.