NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore finally returned to Earth after being in space for more than nine months. Their original mission aboard the ISS was originally for 8 days but because of the unexpected conditions, they made their own board journey from 8 days to 9 months. Despite their prolonged period in space, according to the reports both the stranded astronauts will not be paid overtime, which somehow was a question for most of the people and this condition also made a concern and prompted a reaction from the US President Donald Trump.
NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore receive ‘no overtime pay’ for extended mission
Unlike other commercial jobs, NASA astronauts are federal employees. Federal employees receive the remuneration as the government employees. Under the General Schedule, the NASA astronauts are not entitled to receive the additional pay for their overtime work, maybe holidays or weekends. And the space travel is itself an official travel therefore as per the rules, Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore are not entitled to be paid for their prolonged space stay.
No additional wages for longer-duration missions are being paid to the NASA astronauts. Unlike, they ensure the basic requirements are fulfilled such as stay, food and other during their mission. They also give them a meager amount of $4 per day as incidentals for minor expenses. Wilmore and Williams, this added up to $1,430 (Rs 1,22,980) worth of incidentals during their 286 days in orbit, over and above their ordinary pay. Their basic pay can vary between $94,998 (Rs 81,69,861) and $123,152 (Rs 1,05,91,115).
US President Donald Trump’s reaction on ‘no overtime pay’ for Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore
When asked why the astronauts were spending so long in space and not receiving overtime pay, President Trump said, “Nobody’s ever mentioned this to me. If I have to, I’ll pay it out of my own pocket.” His statement was made after it was realized that the astronauts would not receive extra pay for the longer mission, despite it having taken much longer than initially expected.
When President Trump heard about the $5-per-day allowance, he was surprised, saying, “Is that all? That’s not much for what they had to endure.” His remarks were in appreciation of the hardships the astronauts endured because of their long stay in space.
Trump further responded, “Well, nobody’s ever mentioned this to me, If I have to, I’ll pay it out of my own pocket…That’s not a lot for what they had to go through.”
Donald Trump express gratitude to Elon Musk for their return
In a press conference held at the Oval Office, President Trump even made it a point to express gratitude to Elon Musk for bringing the astronauts back to Earth safely. He said, “If we don’t have Elon… they could be up there for a long time. Who else is going to get them? The body starts to deteriorate after 9-10 months in space. Think if we don’t have time? He’s going through a lot right now.”
Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore post return to Earth health conditions
While their return journey home was physically demanding, the astronauts will next have to cope with readapting to living on Earth. After their long stay in space, Williams and Wilmore will have to endure a strenuous rehabilitation regimen. This would include rebuilding muscle mass and bone density through strength training and movement exercises. This plays an important role because of their prolonged stay exposure to space that could cause deconditioning of the body as a result of the lack of gravity.
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