Needing to make $250 million in public workforce cuts, Gov. David Paterson suggested instituting furloughs for over 100,000 unionized state workers yesterday. Though the policy's legality is being questioned, Paterson defensively insisted that this is the move to make, saying, "Nobody thought I could appoint a lieutenant governor and I did. The courts sustained it. I’ve been sued before. I think that the collective sacrifice is preferable to individual layoffs at this time."
The move would force the workers to go one day a week without pay until the state budget is passed, saving the state about $30 million and affecting everyone from state university professors to DMV clerks. Paterson says it's an extreme measure, but admitted in a press release, “Because unions have not accepted any proposals to achieve necessary savings, I am left with no other choice but to move forward with this plan" The furloughs are linked to the latest emergency spending bill, which have been keeping the government running since the missed budget deadline on April 1st. The only way lawmakers could stop the bill would to be to vote against it, which would halt government operations for a week.
Union members and some lawmakers are opposing the bill anyway, saying it's not a well-thought out plan. New York State AFL-CIO President Dennis Hughes said, "We will not take a back seat to any constituency in this state," and Assembly Minority Leader Brian Kolb said, "I believe the furlough proposal by the governor is more about political gamesmanship than it is about a real sound budget idea." Assembly speaker Sheldon Silver also said that it won't matter whether the Legislature passes the bill or not, because the furloughs are not legal. “If it’s not legal, we can’t make it legal, and if it is legal, the governor does not need the Legislature to do it." Lawmakers have until Monday to vote on the bill.
