I am currently in the Federal workforce, and we (my much younger coworkers and I) can't even get a straight answer from our own agency.

It turns out March 4 coincides with our scheduled payday. The question we've been asking is whether the shutdown is effective as of the beginning of the day on March 4 (which means we would not report to work and would not be paid on that day) or the end of the day on March 4 (which means we would report to work and would be paid).

If anyone can answer this, thank you in advance.