The U.S. government announced late tonight that only emergency workers should report to work Monday in a large area surrounding the International Monetary Fund and World Bank, where thousands of protesters have clashed with police.
Protests continue in Washington.
A spokeswoman for the U.S. Office of Personnel Management said nonessential federal workers at the State Department, the Interior Department and other key agencies in the area would have the day off, at the recommendation of federal and local law enforcement officials. Washington Police Chief Charles Ramsey predicted heavy traffic during the morning rush hour on Monday as the financial leaders gathered for their sixth and final day of meetings with the International Monetary Fund and World Bank. Outside the area near the financial meetings, government agencies would be operating but workers could take unscheduled leave at their own discretion, she said. That area is defined as within and including 12th Street and 23rd Street, Northwest, and Constitution Avenue and K Street. Thousands of anti-globalization protesters tried to block financial leaders from the world's richest nations from meeting today, but they were beaten back by police wielding batons and squirting pepper spray.