This is the latest in a series counting down this year's most-viewed State Worker blog posts, with a little hindsight analysis.
The 6th most-viewed State Worker blog post reported that SEIU Local 1000 and Gov. Jerry Brown had reached an agreement that cut one day's hours and pay per month for the final year of the union's contract.
In exchange, Local 1000 and Brown agreed to terminate student assistants and retired annuitants. Neither group is represented. The governor and the local also agreed to set up a task force on wasteful state outsourcing.
The furloughs that included Local 1000 and other unions cut $839 million in state employee payroll costs, about $401 million of that from the $92 billion general fund. They're set to end July 1.
What would have happened if SEIU refused? Its members still would have been put on furlough. Two other unions representing state government engineers and equipment operators refused to accept the unpaid time off, so the Legislature simply deputized Brown to execute them anyway.
Neither union sued, although there's an argument to be made that the imposed furloughs broke their contracts.
SEIU Local 1000 reaches tentative furlough agreement with Jerry Brown
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