The largest state employees union has filed a third legal action against the governor's executive order to cut state jobs and pay. SEIU Local 1000 filed suit against the state in Sacramento County Superior Court today. About 10,000 state workers were laid off as a result of the governor's order last week. California law requires that employees be paid in full when they are let go. SEIU spokesman Jim Zamora says that didn't happen.
Zamora: Thousands of state workers did not leave with a check in their hand. Once again, this shows that Governor Schwarzenegger did this in an arbitrary and capricious fashion. It was ill thought out, and it was terribly executed.
Under state labor law, workers are entitled to one full day of pay for every day checks are late. The union is suing on behalf of taxpayers. They say it's a waste of money to pay employees who are not on the job.
They are seeking an injunction that would put them back to work. A spokeswoman with the Department of Personnel Administration says all affected workers will be paid what they are legally due. The governor says he called for the cuts to keep the state from running out of money due to lack of a spending plan. The budget is more than a month late.
