Azores Unlocks €1.2 Million Lifeline so Lajes Workers Reclaim Pay

The more than three-hundred Portuguese civilians employed at the United States’ Lajes Air Base on Terceira Island finally have a safety valve: from Monday they may request an interest-free cash advance that covers the pay they never received during Washington’s budget standoff. Regional authorities in the Azores unlocked a bank line worth up to €1.2 M, promising deposits within forty-eight hours and shifting the political spotlight back onto Lisbon and Washington.

What changes next Monday?

Bank counters of the Instituto da Segurança Social dos Açores in Angra do Heroísmo and Praia da Vitória will start processing applications. Each worker can ask for the exact amount withheld since mid-October; two fortnightly wages plus four days are missing. Regional officials insist the money will hit personal accounts in two to three days, turning a months-long worry into immediate liquidity. By contract the staff must reimburse the advance within ten working days of finally being paid by their American employer, but until then the region will carry all risk.

Why are the pay packets empty?

An unprecedented partial shutdown of the U.S. Federal Government froze non-essential outlays and, for the first time, stalled funds for Portuguese personnel covered by the bilateral Defense Cooperation Agreement. The Pentagon normally transfers wages to Portugal’s Social Security, which then wires employees. This autumn the pipeline ran dry because no federal budget was approved in Washington. Previous American shutdowns spared the Lajes workforce, making 2023 a jarring first.

Who is footing the bill in the meantime?

Azorean vice-president Artur Lima authorized the regional treasury to secure a bridging loan with local banks. Lisbon’s cabinet quickly said it will absorb the financial charges so that the autonomous region is not penalised. Both steps aim to reassure households whose mortgages and utility payments have already come due without salaries. Regional leaders, however, accuse the national ministries of Foreign Affairs and Defence of reacting too late, a claim those ministries reject while applauding the interim solution.

Diplomatic phone lines heat up

Foreign Minister Paulo Rangel has been in daily contact with the U.S. Embassy in Lisbon, urging release of funds and hinting at conversations with Congress. Yet officials concede Portugal has no leverage over Capitol Hill scheduling. Behind the scenes, defence attachés in Washington are exploring whether the Pentagon can tap internal contingency coffers to honour overseas payrolls even during a wider federal freeze.

How other NATO hosts handled similar crises

Berlin pre-financed wages for about 11 000 German civilians on American bases during the 2019 shutdown and was later reimbursed; Madrid took a comparable route for its staff at Rota and Morón. Those precedents guided the Azorean response. Italian unions had to negotiate temporary loans for workers near Aviano and Naples, underscoring that host nations routinely shield local employees to preserve base operations and regional economies.

Voices from the base

Commission representative Paula Terra describes morale as fragile: overtime was cut, the October 17 wage arrived trimmed and the October 27 wage never arrived at all. Workers fear more than lost income; they worry about the precedent of being classified as non-essential when U.S. politics gridlocks. Unions demand a renegotiation of the labour accord, pointing to pay scales that lag behind the Azorean minimum wage and to extra duties allegedly assigned without compensation.

What if Washington stays gridlocked?

If Congress fails again to pass a federal budget after the current stop-gap, the Azorean advance could turn from a one-off into a rolling facility. Regional officials say they are prepared to extend the credit line but warn political patience is limited. Economists note that a prolonged shortfall would shift the financial burden onto Portuguese taxpayers unless a binding guarantee is obtained from the Pentagon. Meanwhile, the episode has revived discussion in Lisbon about whether Portugal should press for automatic payment clauses in future defence negotiations.

At a glance

Azorean authorities unlocked a €1.2 M bridge loan so Portuguese staff at Lajes can request missing wages on Monday; deposits should follow within forty-eight hours. The advance is repayable once the U.S. government resolves its shutdown. Lisbon will absorb banking costs, while diplomatic channels seek a permanent fix to prevent any repeat of the first salary freeze in the base’s seventy-five-year history.