Visitors tour the Capitol Rotunda in Washington on Monday. Officials said that with the government shutdown, all such organized tours will be suspended.

WASHINGTON — Federal workers had to report to work for about four hours today even though the government is shutting down. With no late deal averting the midnight Monday shutdown, several federal agencies said employees would be limited to doing work related to the shutdown, including changing voice-mail messages, posting an out-of-office message on e-mail, securing work stations and documents and completing time cards.

At the Environmental Protection Agency, for example, employees were told they cannot work on “any projects, tasks, activities or respond to e-mails.” The Housing and Urban Development Department said it would close its offices at 1:30 p.m. Other agencies, such as the Labor Department, expected most employees to be gone by midday.

Once they head home, furloughed employees are under strict orders not to do any work. That means no sneaking glances at BlackBerrys or smartphones to check e-mails, no turning on laptop computers, no checking office voice mail, and no use of any other government-issued equipment.

Office managers were encouraging workers to leave government-issued cell phones and computers in a secure place at the office. Those employees who work from home may find it more difficult to break the habit of checking e-mails or looking at documents.

Employees were to receive an official e-mail today explaining whether or not they are essential or slated to be furloughed. The e-mail was to include appeal rights and a form to use for seeking unemployment insurance. Some workers may be eligible for unemployment depending where they live. Some states require a one-week waiting period before applying.

Federal workers would not see their pay affected right away. If a shutdown continues, all employees can expect to be paid Oct. 15 for work from Sept. 22 through Sept. 30.