India, Oct. 17 -- When a longtime Social Security employee in the US scheduled surgery for early October, she did not think that a routine medical procedure could become a career risk.

The operation would have required two weeks off to recover but this absence was necessary.

But the federal government shutdown changed everything, turning what should have been a simple decision about her health into a stressful matter.

During the shutdown, taking sick leave could result into taken off-duty, a policy that applied even to essential employees at the Social Security Administration. This is known as a furlough notice, according to a report by CNN.

Unusually, any furlough notice filed during this period would appear under "disciplinary and a...