PORTLAND, Maine (AP)   Maine’s independent senator is among a group of lawmakers promoting legislation to secure back pay for employees who work as contractors for the U.S. government during the ongoing federal shutdown.

The bill is called the Fair Compensation for Low-Wage Contractor Employees Act. Sen. Angus King and other lawmakers say federal contractor employees have had to go without pay during the shutdown, and the act would benefit them.

King says the proposal would benefit employees such as janitors, food service workers and security guards. Such workers have been furloughed or had to accept reduced hours as a result of the shutdown that began last month.

King says the contractors “are not responsible for this shutdown, and they should not be punished for it.”