Millions of civilian jobs at stake

CHICOPEE, Mass. (WWLP) - Massive federal budget cuts could lead to furloughs and layoffs across the country, including right here in Massachusetts.

If Congress can't reach a deal on the budget by next Friday, the civilian payroll in our state could be cut by $45 million. Federal workers, from FBI agents to employees at Veterans' hospitals could be affected. These cuts were supposed to go into effect on January 1st, but they were delayed because of the fiscal cliff negotiations.

There are other parts of the country that could be hit even worse though than Massachusetts with these cuts. According to a new Wells Fargo study, this includes federal and defense industry workers in Maryland, Virginia and D.C.

Pentagon figures show its civilian payroll in Massachusetts for the 2012 fiscal year was $531.7 million, and about $486.7 million for 2013.