Students work in class at Kaiserslautern High School, Germany. Many Defense Department teachers were notified by the Defense Finance and Accounting Service on Nov. 5, 2025, that they owed hundreds or even thousands of dollars. (Jennifer H. Svan/Stars and Stripes)

KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany — Teachers at Defense Department schools had reason to check their leave and earnings statement this week, even though they still were not getting paid amid the longest federal government shutdown in U.S. history.

Many were notified by the Defense Finance and Accounting Service on Wednesday morning that they owed money, to the tune of hundreds or even thousands of dollars.

It turned out the debt letter was automatically triggered by a glitch in the payroll system, and teachers were told the issue would be resolved once the partial shutdown ended. But the unexpected notifications triggered panic and amplified anxiety for a number or recipients.

“Not only am I having to come to work and not getting paid; you’re now telling me I owe money, so I’m being charged to come to work?” said James, a DODEA teacher in Italy who asked to be identified only by his first name for fear of retaliation.

“It really takes a lot out of the enthusiasm for the thing that we all love to do,” said James, who was told in the letter that he owed $600.

Employees of DODEA are “excepted,” meaning they are considered mission-essential and therefore continue to work without pay.

Although it’s unknown how many debt letters were sent out, the leader of a union that represents DODEA educators said many of them had received one.

The union “will take every measure to protect our members’ rights and will work with members on an individual basis as needed,” Richard Tarr, executive director of the Federal Education Association, said in a statement Wednesday.

DFAS did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday.

Jessica Tackaberry, a DODEA spokeswoman, said teaching and administrative staff worldwide had been affected by the glitch, which she said stemmed from the coding system used for employees during an appropriations lapse.

The centralized pay system at DFAS “is not able to override these automated adjustments, which is why debt letters were issued,” she said. DODEA employees who received such a letter don’t need to make any payments on it for now, Tackaberry said.

“Once Congress passes an appropriations bill and normal operations resume, all timecards will be corrected,” Tackaberry said, adding that “it may take a few pay periods to reconcile them.”

DODEA operates 161 schools across the globe for more than 60,000 students, and more than 11,500 full-time employees are working without pay during the shutdown, like many government staffers who have been deemed essential.

Many are already struggling to keep their families and finances afloat while continuing to teach the children of U.S. service members.

Four other DODEA teachers in Europe who received the debt letter spoke on condition of anonymity for the same reason as James.

They described the ongoing challenges of working without income or benefits amid the shutdown, which reached its 38th day Friday, two days after becoming the longest-ever lapse of U.S. government operations.

“The stress is palpable across the board,” said one, calling the debt notifications “icing on the cake.”

The educator said she had to tell colleagues to check their pay statement because many weren’t bothering to log in to payroll since their earnings in October were $0.

“The look on their faces was heartbreaking,” said the teacher, who had incurred a $1,300 debt herself. “It was just like another thing.”

She also said two of her colleagues asked her this week whether they are allowed to strike.

“That’s not something that has ever come up before in conversation,” she said, noting that DODEA employees do not have that option.

“If you’re worried about the safety and security of your own family, how can you really be 100% dialed in to other families’ kids?” she said.

Another DODEA teacher, a single parent who was told she owed $2,500, said some of her medical reimbursements to local providers are being denied because her health insurance premiums are going unpaid as a result of the shutdown.

Her Italian landlord recently threatened “to take action” in 15 to 20 days if he doesn’t get paid, she said.

A DODEA teacher in Europe who is the sole breadwinner for her family said she had to borrow money from her elderly parents to pay rent this month, an expense compounded by the weak exchange rate of the dollar against the euro.

She had to dip into savings to pay last month’s rent and she said she’s reached “the point where we’re like, ‘Wow, is this government job even stable?’”

Despite Tackaberry’s assurances that the debts mentioned in the letters don’t have to be paid now, teachers expressed worry that it may take a long time to remove the debt from their records.

The situation feels like another example of “nobody’s looking after us,” said James, who questioned why no one told them the debt letters were coming so as not to cause panic.

“Those of us that are in the classrooms, at the schools, just have to kind of suck it up and continue on,” he said.