The moon rises above the National Mall in Washington, DC, in October. (CNN) — Right after setting her out-of-office email on October 1, one furloughed US Department of Agriculture worker filed for unemployment benefits to help her pay for food, rent and other necessities during the federal government shutdown. More than three weeks later, her application is still listed as pending – forcing her to borrow from family and friends as the impasse continues with no end in sight. The Massachusetts Department of Unemployment Assistance told her she may have to wait up to three months to receive her first payment, though she will receive a lump sum for all the missed weeks of claims. “But that doesn’t help me now,” said the worker, who asked for anonymity for fear of retaliation. “The rent is due on November 1.” The USDA staffer is among the nearly 20,600 furloughed federal employees who have filed for unemployment benefits during the first three weeks of the shutdown, according to Andrew Stettner, director of economy and jobs at The Century Foundation, a progressive think tank. Initial jobless claims for federal workers have soared to their highest level since the record 35-day shutdown that ended in January 2019. That compares to 635 initial claims filed by federal workers for the week ending September 13, according to the most recent data published by the US Department of Labor before the impasse. Maryland and Texas have the highest number of initial claims, with more than 3,100 filings each, said Stettner, who analyzed unemployment data filed in 49 states and territories. More workers are expected to file for unemployment compensation in the coming weeks since many missed their first full paychecks on Friday and more will do so in coming days. Unlike in previous shutdowns, many are concerned that they may not receive back pay or have a job to go back to after the shutdown ends. The Trump administration has called into question a 2019 law that guarantees retroactive compensation for furloughed workers and has tried to lay off more than 4,000 workers during the impasse. (A federal judge recently paused the administration’s efforts to downsize the federal workforce during the shutdown.) Still, only a small share of the estimated 670,000 furloughed federal employees have applied for jobless benefits. There are multiple reasons why most of them don’t file claims, including the hassle in having their wages verified, the delay in getting payments and the fact that they’ll have to repay the benefits once the shutdown ends and they receive their back pay.