Schwarzenegger proposes 5% cut in state worker salaries [Updated]

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has proposed a 5% cut in 200,000 state workers’ salaries.

Combined with existing mandatory furloughs, that would mean about a 15% pay cut for those workers. The proposal would affect appointees and civil servants in agencies run by the governor but not employees of other elected officials, such as the attorney general or controller.

“Everyone in the state is cutting back right now — businesses, families,” said Matt David, spokesman for Schwarzenegger. “The governor feels it’s very important that state workers do the same thing.”

The proposal, to be announced Friday, would save the state $470 million, David said, and is part of the governor's plan to close a projected $24-billion budget gap.

[Updated at 4:30 p.m.: Schwarzenegger last year forced state workers to take off two days a month without pay, amounting to about a 10% salary reduction.

The new decrease, which would have to be approved by lawmakers during budget negotiations, would not come with any time off. It would take effect with the new budget in July. The governor in recent weeks has proposed closing $21 billion of the budget gap mostly through drastic cuts to a variety of state programs that provide healthcare, welfare, education and law enforcement, and he also wants to borrow $2 billion from local governments.

Besides the wage cuts, his new proposal will include additional reductions to funding for education, health and human services, sources said.]

[Updated 4:55 p.m.: The cuts would not affect employees of the Legislature or the state court system, officials said. They had earlier said the cuts would not affect employees of other elected officials.]

-- Michael Rothfeld

Comments

[C. Zimmer]

I have heard from other sources that the pay cut would not affect legislative and judicial staff, but would affect executive branch staff who work for constitutional officers (Attorney General, State Controller, etc).

[Jen]

This whole state is messed up. No money for the poor and no help for those to get out of poverty. Now public workers of the lowest paid will get a pay cut, not the higher paid fat rearends. Keep padding the pockets of the lobbyist, may Arnold rott in hell.

[John Griffith]

IT is about time they took this step. Many small business friends have had to do much more to stay in business combining pay cuts and layoffs. Why should state employees be any different? The only problem I see is that it should include all state employees not just those working for the governor.

[yayforprop8]

You are on the right tract Gov, now just find a way to stop funding all the pension programs and we might be onto something.

[geo8rge]

Wuss! Latvia cut 20%. Ireland cut 10%. Girl-ly man can barely do 5%. Be a man Arnold cut 25%. Furlough ain't no pay cut - son.

[Pancho Villa]

Is this guy as incompetent as it seems? Someone explain to me how Californians voted for this clown of a governor. Why would anyone thnk that a bodybuilder millionaire can solve the people's problems, which are many. How can Californians think that this person could protect us from insurance companies, banks, the drug industry, and the military-industrial-prison complex?

[Robert Laughing]

STILL WAITING, LA TIMES; what was the number of State employees 10 years ago vs today? How m,any NOW FET cars? AND Taxpayer funded credit cards for porn, Starbux, personal gasoline, lunch and dinner, travel NOT on Govt/Taxpayer business??

Second, do it AGAIN, for County and City workers....we have the RIGHT TO KNOW, and isn't THIS REQUEST, part of the LA TIMES CIVIC DUTY???

I suspect very strongly, buying overpriced junkers from Detroit, was what KEPT these bankrupt car companies in business TOO LONG!!

[edlaw]

5% why not 50%? And while you are at it how about eliminating all of the retiree contracts that let guvment workers retire at the ripe old age of 50. And oh yea eliminate ALL medical benefits.

Start there then call me in the morning.

[bc]

5% - that's all? Most in the private sector have endured cuts much larger than that. These guys just don't get it....

[Michael Wyeth]

The numbers speak for themselves....Why is it that our state senators and assemblymen never ask why we have 2,152 Forestry and Fire protection state employees who make between $100,000 and $289,000 a year? Did you ever hear their concern that we have 5,661 rank-and-file Correctional Officers who make between $100,000 and $231,687 annually? How is this for a little transparency? Did you know we have 4,383 employees of the California Highway Patrol who make between $100,000 and $291,761? If you listened to your Republican lawmakers you would never know that. Yet it is okay to cut $500 million in healthcare for poor children? The Sacramento Bee has www.sacbee.com/statepay that shows the total pay for every state employee. Search it by department, occupation or name. Next time you bump into one of your state representatives you can ask them why they are afraid to speak the truth.

[KH]

What about the governor's salary and benefits ? And his staffs' ?
We haven't heard of any action taken against those who are directly responsibles for this mess.
Now we all know what Terminator means...

[Joe Everyman]

5%? That's a big deal? I don't think so. Try a reduction of 20% or better. The state worker's are grossly overpaid and over-pensioned as everyone knows. They've managed to slip in pay increases thick or thin for decades. Now everyone's on notice of the big problem in our state - salaries and pension funding for state employees large and small are way too high. Things must change.

One small area for discussion:: Government workers have lots of (tons of) job stability over the average private sector kook in this county. Less job risk (ie more job security) should always equate to less pay, it seems to me, under normal circumstances. Certainly not equal or even better pay than the private sector.

Get with it state employees. Stop asking for more or the same. Give something for a change.

[Lois]

I am appalled that California has come to this shambles of drastic cuts.
I think that the current legislature should be voted out of office and an initiative proposed that if the legislature cannot agree on a budget within the deadline. the salaries of said legislators will be frozen and the legislators locked up to work on the state budget. If there is no agreement within a month of the deadline, the governor shall construct a budget and the legislature shall have no input.
I think this whole episode has gone far enough and the governor and the legislature have amply demonstrated their disdain for the people of California.

[Sam Moore]

It appears that the "Governator" has not included the California state legislators and his own office in these reductions

[KauaiMark]

"...The cuts would not affect employees of the Legislature or the state court system, officials said. They had earlier said the cuts would not affect employees of other elected officials."

Why the hell not!!!

[yaridanjo]

The Calif. budget crisis is traceable directly back to George W. Bush and his failure to allow the FERC to limit the excessive charges for power during his first term in office. This is where California's deficit came from in the first place. Thus it is incumbent on the federal government to bail out California because they caused the problem. 30 billion dollars could be recovered by stopping aid to Israel (which is not our 51 st. state) and send this money to California which is an actual state of the United States.

[KingofthePaupers]

Jct: When Argentina's government workers were faced with cuts, their unions talked 6 state governments into paying them with small-denomination state bonds which could be used to pay for state services and taxes. Too bad these government workers can't convince their unions to demand being paid with bond currency instead of pay-cuts too.
Best of all, when the local currency is pegged to the Time Standard of Money (how many dollars/hour child labor) Hours earned locally can be intertraded with other timebanks globally! In 1999, I paid for 39/40 nights in Europe with an IOU for a night back in Canada worth 5 Hours.
See my banking systems engineering analysis at http://youtube.com/kingofthepaupers with an index of articles at http://johnturmel.com/kotp.htm

[robertsgt40]

Hey Arnie--I didn't see mentioned any cuts for elected officials...including you. Don't you think it's just a little hippocritical not to take a little back from those that screwed the state into the ground? Come on Arnie, don't be a girly man. Pony up. Show the people you are on their team. Take one for the Gipper.

[Appalled]

I am appalled at the ignorance of the average Californian. As Joe Everyman said "5%, why not 20%". If this short-sighted person had read the entire article.....and if he could ADD, it is already at 15% paycut! How dare he say that everyone knows the state worker is grossly overpaid and over pensioned.....he clearly does not know the truth. I dare him to walk in the shoes of a state worker and see the hell we put up with everyday working for the 'common' people of CA. His attitude is thrown at us every single day. FYI - we have 103 state workers for every 10,000 Californians. That puts CA second to last in this nation. State workers have not had a pay raise in years and years. We have been losing postions by the hundreds for years. We have been forced to cut back even before the governor decided to act on the recession. So don't sit there and spout off stupid idotic statements when you have no clue to reality!! I have worked for the state for 30 years. I pay over $250 a month for medical insurance for the two of us. I am expect to handle a case load that is twice the number in similar private sector jobs. I contribute 50% of the money that is set aside for retirement and yet, I will have to work another 10+ years just to be able to retire! I'll be 70 then. We have been losing pay way before the private sector has. So don't think everything is rosy for state workers! Go after the legislature who don't take pay cuts, who vote raises for themselves, who have taxes pay for their second homes and cars when their first home is only 12 miles from the capital! Go after those that lavishly and openly steal from the people. Go after those who allow it, just because they can!

[Bill Jones]

It's a start.

[Joe]

My question is how come the officials and the highway patrols and many other agencies don't get paid cut? It's 15% now.. I don't mind getting paid cut, but let's be fair. Private sector.. you are getting paid cut because of the economy.. We are getting paid cut because of stupid arnie. I don't hear him get a paid cut himself? How come not ALL departments get paid cut? I guess if you want to see the prisons go down and murderers walk freely on the street and kill the person walking next to him or her.. Go ahead..... How are you sleep at night arnie? If you are going to cut, be fair!!!!!!!!!!