Federal workers miss pay day as US gov't shutdown goes on

Hundreds of thousands of US government workers have missed their first payday of the year as the partial shutdown of federal agencies bites deeper.

Employees such as prison guards, airport staff and FBI agents have been working without pay. The government shutdown, which began last month, will become the longest in history on Saturday on its 22nd day.

President Donald Trump is refusing to approve a federal budget unless it includes funding for a border wall. But Democrats have rejected his request for $5.7bn (£4.5bn).

About a quarter of the federal government is out of operation until a spending plan is agreed, leaving 800,000 employees unpaid.

On Friday, those workers missed their first payday of this shutdown. Some shared their blank payslips on social media.

Oscar Murillo, an aerospace engineer at Nasa, posted his $0 cheque on Twitter and said he had actually lost money because of mandatory deductions.

Meanwhile, the classified advertising website Craigslist has been flooded with listings from federal workers trying to sell their possessions.

Items ranging from beds to old toys have been listed as "government shutdown specials".