Thousands of workers filled the sidewalks from 11am onwards, after they had been instructed to go home.  Inside, two Labor department chiefs - David Michaels, an assistant secretary, and his deputy, Jordan Barab - had just finished visiting every single office to speak personally with staff. Barab did so despite being on crutches.  The two men assured staff that they were important and apologized for the situation, according to several employees who came out immediately afterwards.  Like other government employees, Labor Department workers had been instructed to return to work on Tuesday, to learn their fate. Upon arrival, they were given meetings by department supervisors, and told whether or not they were needed for work.  Then all that was left was for employees to turn on out-of-office alerts on their emails, voicemail messages on their desk phones, turn off their computers at the socket and complete their time-sheets.  Department employees were told to state that they had worked just 4 hours on Tuesday, and then add 'UF' - code for furloughed - on the timesheets.  "There was no sense when we might come back," said Lisa Long, 45, a safety engineer. "People were demoralised and maybe even a little shocked that it was actually happening."  The impact of the shutdown is not only being felt by the hundreds of thousands of employees who suddenly find themselves out of work; the consequences ripple out further.  On Tuesday, the hot-dog trucks that usually stationed outside the rear entrance of the Francis Perkins Building building were gone. Nearly all of the restaurants that cater for office-workers were closed.  Employees in the Labor building include some well-paid senior officials, but others on annual salaries as low as $25,000. "These people need paychecks, they gotta eat," said Monique Tribbett, a 45-year-old IT contractor.  "I'm trying to get people to protest. Not just people in the department but, you know all these other people who are affected. If we all went, right now, to the steps of the Capitol Building and protested then they might start listening to us, but people don't wanna stand together. I feel like I'm on my own."
• Federal shutdown begins as Congress fails to reach deal • Estimated 800,000 federal workers told to stay at home • National parks and museums closed, Nasa affected • Are you a federal worker? We want to hear from you • Read the latest blog summary here