-Caveat Lector- http://www.sacbee.com/content/politics/story/5483658p-6467090c.html
This story is taken from politics at sacbee.com. Drastic state job cuts seen Thousands expected to be laid off; others may face pay cuts. By Ed Fletcher -- Bee Capitol Bureau - (Published December 6, 2002) Thousands of state workers will be laid off as the state seeks to trim nearly half a billion dollars from its payroll next year, administration officials said Thursday. State workers surviving the layoffs will be asked to share the state's fiscal pain by forgoing pay raises now scheduled to take effect in July. "We are gearing up for very significant layoffs," said Marty Morgenstern, director of the Department of Personnel Administration. "I don't know how many. I would think thousands rather than hundreds." The move to rein in state payroll costs comes as Gov. Gray Davis and the Legislature embark on a strategy for bridging a massive budget deficit. The official estimate of the shortfall through June 2004 is $21.1 billion, in a general fund of $78 billion. But lawmakers and others have said it is likely to reach $30 billion or more. Today, Davis is scheduled to release his plan to cover $10 billion of the gap, double the amount he proposed two weeks ago. "Hard times require hard decisions," the Democratic governor said in a prepared statement Thursday. On Monday, the Legislature is scheduled to convene in a rare special session to consider Davis' proposed midyear cuts. Morgenstern, who met Thursday with representatives of state employee unions to deliver the news, called the state budget difficulties "a crisis of unparalleled proportions." Cutting thousands of state employee positions also would be unparalleled in the modern era. Morgenstern said 2,500 California Department of Transportation workers were transferred to other departments in 1975. A few hundred employees were laid off in the 1990s, but he said most were found new state jobs. Morgenstern said such transfers would be unlikely this time. He said state employee representatives were told payroll reductions would come through a combination of layoffs and salary cost savings. "Everybody knew there is a real crisis. No one is happy, but no one was surprised," Morgenstern said of the meeting. The administration currently employs 182,000 workers at an annual cost of $10 billion, excluding benefits. An additional 144,000 state workers not directly under the administration's control, including California State University, University of California, court and legislative employees, cost the state $7.1 billion. It remained unclear whether Davis also would seek layoffs or salary cost savings from that group. Jim Hard, who represents civil service division employees within the California State Employees Association, said the state shouldn't lay off employees at a time when Californians will need state services more than ever. "I don't think anyone wants DMV lines any longer," Hard said. He said the state should first raise taxes on the rich, close tax loopholes and stop contracting out for services state employees could do. Bruce Blanning, speaking on behalf of engineers working for the state, also said the state could save money by eliminating outside contracts. "Before you talk to us about reducing payroll, stop wasting money contracting out," Blanning said. The bulk of state workers are expecting a modest boost in take-home pay in July, when a 5 percent raise kicks in. In their current two-year contracts, most state workers were allowed to reduce their contribution to their retirement account without that reduction penalizing their retirement package. But the raise was to be the first in base pay for most state employees since they received a 4 percent boost in September 2000. The unions are now being asked to return to the bargaining table and delay that increase. According to Blanning and others, the administration insisted there will be no "sacred cows" as changes in state employee contracts are discussed. California Highway Patrol officers and state correctional officers, who signed more lucrative contracts last year, are set to receive raises of between 25 percent and 37 percent by the time their five-year deals expire. The contract signed by the Association of California Highway Patrolmen includes provisions for raises in the final three years so that CHP officer salaries reach parity with major law enforcement agencies within the state, including the Los Angeles Police Department. That contract settled a lawsuit brought by the association seeking to enforce a state law tying CHP pay to the pay of the local law enforcement officers. While the state was not required to do so, it gave a similar contract to correctional officers at the state's prisons who were represented by the California Correctional Peace Officers Association. Morgenstern said at the time the contract was reached that it was important to maintain the relationship between the officers' pay because the two groups compete for the same recruits. The corrections contract was widely criticized as a giveaway to one of Davis' largest political contributors at a time the state was already facing a budget shortfall. The correctional officers union spent more than $1 million this year to help Davis win re- election. It has also given heavily to legislators and is hosting a three-day conference in Hawaii this week that as many as 20 lawmakers are expected to attend. Longtime corrections union official Don Novey didn't attend the administration's meeting with employee groups, but said in a telephone interview from Hawaii that losing staff would put correctional officers and public safety at risk. "In the public safety field, you can't really afford to lose staff," Novey said. He said the Legislature will have to "look at" tax increases. "People are going to have to be creative," he said. CSEA President Perry Kenny said the current dilemma puts unions in a tough position but that the state still has to bargain in good faith. "We have to see what can be salvaged," Kenny said. Morgenstern made it clear that if the payroll is not reduced, it would mean more layoffs. "The state has a crisis of enormous proportions," Morgenstern said. "State employee cooperation will make it better for them and better for everyone." 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