Donald Trump Was Asked Whether Sunita Williams Would Receive Overtime Pay. His Response
Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore, who have been residing at the ISS since June 5 last year, were taken back to Earth aboard SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft in the early hours of Wednesday.
Washington, United States:
Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore touched down in the United States earlier this week after being in space for more than nine months – following what was originally planned as an eight-day ISS (International Space Station) mission. Although spending an extra 278 days in space, NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore will not be getting paid overtime – an offer made to them by US President Donald Trump.
When asked about the computed overtime of NASA astronauts, Mr Trump replied, “Nobody’s ever mentioned this to me. If I have to, I’ll pay it out of my own pocket.“.
As opposed to commercial astronauts, NASA astronauts are government employees – meaning they receive the same base salary as any other government employee. Under the General Schedule, they do not receive additional pay for long-duration missions – such as working overtime, on weekends, or holidays. Even the travel to space is official travel since government employees.
NASA pays for the astronauts’ travel, accommodation, and food. They also provide additional cash ($5) for minor everyday expenses which they refer to as “incidentals“. Ms Williams and Mr Wilmore were away in space for 286 days so they will receive an additional $1,430 (Rs 1,22,980) each – on top of their pay of between $94,998 (Rs 81,69,861) and $123,152 (Rs 1,05,91,115).
When Trump was told about the “incidentals,“ he remarked, “Is that all? That’s not a lot for what they had to go through.“
At a press conference in the Oval Office, Mr Trump expressed gratitude to Elon Musk for having brought the NASA astronauts back to their homeland.
“If we don’t have Elon. They can be up there for a very long time. Who else will take them? The body begins to decay after 9-10 months in space. Imagine if we don’t have time? He’s (Elon Musk) is going through a lot right now,” the US President said.
Sunita Williams comes home
Ms Williams and Mr Wilmore, who had been in orbit aboard the ISS since June 5 last year, were brought back to Earth in the early hours of Wednesday in SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft. They splashed down off Florida’s east coast and stepped out of the capsule on stretchers – as tradition dictates.
Images of the smiling and waving astronauts from within the capsule and on the stretchers were broadcast live across the globe.
Not only their families, but the return of the astronauts was celebrated worldwide.
Although the flight back home was challenging, the NASA astronauts will take a little time to get back to normal lives. They will undergo a months-long rehabilitation program to restore muscle mass and bone density – including strength training and mobility exercises.
