A San Francisco appellate court applied the brakes Tuesday to a judge's order to end "Furlough Fridays" for tens of thousands of state workers, keeping furloughs in place.

The 1st District Court of Appeal's decision temporarily maintains Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's furlough policy for employees in about 70 state departments who were supposed to resume a regular work schedule this week.

And, with three months left until furloughs are scheduled to end, the appellate court's decision signals that state employees aren't likely to return to full-time work in April – and maybe not until the governor says so.

Schwarzenegger spokesman Aaron McLear said that for now the ruling averts other moves the governor has been weighing to cut payroll costs if furloughs aren't an option.

"We budgeted for the furloughs," McLear said. "If the unions are successful in blocking furloughs, it would guarantee pay cuts and layoffs. The governor is not going to shield state workers from economic realities facing other California families and businesses."

The three-day-a-month policy slashes furloughed workers' pay by nearly 15 percent. Many state employees say that furloughs increase their job stress since demand for services is unabated.

Tuesday's action came just one day after attorneys representing the governor asked the appellate court to block Alameda Superior Court Judge Frank Roesch's order to end furloughs for state workers in so-called "special-fund" departments.

Of the 200,000 state workers Schwarzenegger has furloughed since February 2009, an estimated 70,000 to 80,000 employees work in special-fund departments, which get a significant part of their budgets from sources outside the state's deficit-plagued general fund. Service Employees International Union Local 1000 represents about 53,000 of those special-fund workers.

In December, Roesch agreed with the unions' argument that Schwarzenegger illegally furloughed those workers. He ordered the governor to exempt them from furloughs and issue back pay for lost wages.

Schwarzenegger immediately appealed, which automatically froze, or "stayed," the furlough status quo.

Roesch last week kept in place the stay on back pay – allowing the state to avoid paying out hundreds of millions of dollars for now – but told the governor to end the special-fund department furloughs immediately.

Schwarzenegger then argued to the appellate court that it should block Roesch's order while the appeals process plays out. The governor's attorneys said in their court filings that Roesch's rulings are riddled with legal errors, and his order to end some furloughs "created confusion and disparity," since workers with the same jobs would be treated differently based on the origin of their departments' funding.

Tuesday's temporary stay, signed by Presiding Justice J. Anthony Kline, gives the governor until Friday to file more documents to buttress his case. SEIU Local 1000 and unions representing state attorneys, doctors and dentists have until next Wednesday to reply.

It's possible that the appellate court won't settle the issue before Schwarzenegger ends the furlough policy itself. The governor has said he wants to end furloughs June 30, at the end of the 2009-10 fiscal year, in favor of an across-the-board 5 percent pay cut, an increase in employee contributions to retirement, and a 5 percent unallocated cut to state departments next fiscal year.

The 1st District Court took up a similar case in January involving a furlough dispute between Schwarzenegger and the California Correctional Peace Officers' Association. It's still unresolved, and CCPOA members are still on furlough.

Sacramento labor attorney Tim Yeung said the appellate court acts on its own calendar, but he expects it will rule even if furloughs end June 30.

"Even if these cases are moot," Yeung said, "if the situation could reoccur, the court will rule on the merits."

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Call Jon Ortiz, Bee Capitol Bureau, (916) 321-1043.

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