SOOO, WHAT PROTECTIONS DOES THIS CONTRACT OFFER?

The Buzz: Bad news for state workers in LAO memo on contracts
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Published: Monday, Apr. 4, 2011 - 12:00 am | Page 3A

Hold the champagne: New contracts may be too costly

State workers looking for good news on contracts recently negotiated by Gov. Jerry Brown's administration won't find it in an internal state memo issued by the Legislative Analyst's Office last week.

Because those contracts don't come close to saving the state enough money, the memo says, the deals heighten pressure on the state to cut costs through "hiring freezes, furlough programs, and layoffs."

The memo, sent last Wednesday to Senate Republicans, estimates that the contracts would cut costs by only about one-third of the $308 million that Brown projected in his proposed budget.

The LAO, which recently suggested that lawmakers impose pay cuts to save money, based its estimate on a review of the ratified or tentative memoranda of understanding reached with 19 of the state's 21 bargaining units.

The LAO had yet to receive the details of deals reached with two bargaining units – the California Correctional Peace Officers Association and the International Union of Operating Engineers.

– Jon Ortiz

Read more: http://www.sacbee.com/2011/04/04/3525462/the-buzz-bad-news-for-state-workers.html#ixzz1IZwXGheg