PENSACOLA, Fla. -- Now five weeks into the government shutdown with no end in sight, some furloughed workers in Northwest Florida are looking for new employment opportunities.

CareerSource Escarosa says they've seen more federal workers since the start of the shutdown.

Government contractor William Oliver is one of them.

"You're just really trying to keep your head above water," he says.

Oliver is a Navy veteran with a wife and five kids. He says his job gave him a warning to start saving money ahead of the shutdown.

Nothing could have prepared him for 34 days without the usual paycheck.

"Money is there, but not what we expected heading into the holidays," Oliver said.

Now Oliver spends his days touring hiring agencies in Northwest Florida to find a job until the shutdown is over -- and he isn’t alone.

"While they're concerned about what's next tomorrow, we're trying to reassure them that everything's going to be OK," says Tarae Donaldson, CareerSource Escarosa director of career services & one stop operations.

Careersource Escarosa is a non-profit that connects businesses with job seekers in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties.