State pay cut could ravage Sacramento region

[marmar]

State pay cut could ravage Sacramento region

By Phillip Reese and Dale Kasler
[e-mail]

Published: Sunday, Jul. 11, 2010 - 12:00 am | Page 1A


A summer of minimum wage for state workers would likely make Sacramentans nostalgic for Furlough Fridays.

The region could lose about $60 million a week in wages if Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger succeeds in cutting most state workers' pay to $7.25 an hour, according to a Bee analysis of state salary data. The weekly loss would be roughly equal to the city of Folsom's general budget for an entire year – and would do additional damage to a region still bleeding from a collapsed housing market and 17 months of state worker furloughs.

Minimum wage would represent "an additional shot across the bow of Sacramentans," said Rick Niello, president of Niello Co. car dealerships and brother of a state assemblyman. Niello doubts state workers would buy any cars, "a blow to an already-anemic economy."

The ripple effect could be enormous. The lost wages are enough to support as many as 25,000 jobs – from bankers to bakers – according to figures based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data. The impact, however, would be minimized if a state budget is passed quickly and the federal minimum-wage cap holds for only a month.

Nothing is certain, and pay cuts may not come at all. The governor issued an order to state Controller John Chiang on July 1 telling him to start paying most workers the federal minimum wage until a budget is passed. Chiang said no, even after losing his latest court appeal, citing technical and legal challenges posed by an aging payroll management system. Another case is pending before the state courts. ............(more)

The complete piece: http://www.sacbee.com/2010/07/11/2882156/state-pay-cut-could-ravage-sacramento.html#ixzz0tNjM8uHa

[RKP5637]

1. And more customer business will be lost causing some businesses to fail, tax rolls to decrease and

continue to help fuel the downward spiral.

[napi21]

2. What does Arnie mean by "Most State workers"? Does that mean

including the legislators, police, firefighters, etc? Or is it ONLY the current hourly workers, meaning the already lowest paid?

[RKP5637]

3. Isn't Arnie a state worker too? ... should get $7.25/hr also.

[napi21]

4. AFAIK Arnie isn't taking a salary during his governorship. nt

[RKP5637]

5. Oh, thanks for FYI. n/t

[tularetom]

6. Actually he hustled through negotiations with the highway patrolman's union

Exempting them from the pay cut. And I don't know this for a fact but he probably gave them everything they wanted.

Knowing he was gonna pull this shitty little deal on the rest of the state workers and knowing the ration of shit he would take if there was carnage on the highways.

[GiveMeFreedom]

7. Ahnold's

personal body guards are provided by the California Highway Patrol. Wouldn't want to piss these guys off. Don't much care for him myself.

http://wcco.com/watercooler/schwarzenegger.bodyguard.spending.2.1366589.html