This post has been updated.

A “blue flu” continues to sweep across the nation’s airports as more Transport Security Agency (TSA) employees call in sick after yet another no-pay day amid the government shutdown.

On Thursday, Jan. 24, TSA reported a 7.6% rate of unscheduled absences, compared to a 3% rate on the same day in 2017. According to the press release, “many employees are reporting that they are not able to report to work due to financial limitations.”

This is a slight decrease from earlier in the week, when 10% of TSA employees called out sick from work on Jan. 20. Nevertheless, the absences over the last two weeks have been about twice the normal rate.

In an effort to curtail some of the absences, TSA announced that airport screeners and other agency employees will begin to receive partial back pay. It will amount to slightly less than half a paycheck. The pay will cover Dec. 23 through Jan. 25, and “the agency is able to do this by pulling the money from remaining fiscal 2018 appropriations,” POLITICO reported.

CBS Correspondent Kris Van Cleave‏, citing TSA Administrator David Pekoske, reported last week that TSA employees were starting to stay home because of the shutdown: “It’s not a sick out, officers aren’t pretending to be sick. They are saying they cannot afford to work for free any longer.”

TSA previously told Yahoo Finance that “the number of [Transportation Security Officers] that work on any given day is approximately 33,000.” So thousands of TSA officers are now missing work each day.

The wait times at airport security checkpoints were considered longer than normal for several airports on Jan. 24. Hartsfield-Jackson Airport in Atlanta reached a maximum wait time of 42 minutes, with BWI Airport not far behind at 37 minutes. Other extensive wait times included Houston, Honolulu, Minneapolis-St. Paul, and Miami.

TSA agents skip work amid historic shutdown

The current shutdown is the longest-ever in history, and politicians are still engaged in a deadlock as they fight over President Donald Trump’s proposed $5.7 billion steel border wall on the U.S.-Mexico border.

Various government agencies have put federal workers on either furlough or are making them work without pay as the shutdown drags on.

Over 50,000 TSA employees are still expected to work since they are considered “essential.” Screeners represent 6% of those who didn’t get paid.

“Not only will continuing the shutdown increase airport delays and hinder commerce,” Committee on Homeland Security Chairman Bennie G. Thompson said in a statement., “it could have a negative impact on aviation security if a resolution does not come quickly.”