Against the backdrop of difficult contract talks, five state worker labor unions have asked a judge to order Gov. Jerry Brown to stop what they say are illegal three-day-per-month furloughs.

The 44-page filing in Alameda Superior Court, submitted late Wednesday, argues that the furlough policy Brown carried over from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's administration exceeds limits set by the Legislature, which has final say on what the state pays employees.

But unlike the nasty public barbs that labor and management routinely fired at each other when Republican Schwarzenegger was boss, Democrat Brown's administration and the unions seemed almost apologetic that the 2-year-old furlough fight is continuing.

On Thursday, officials on both sides put distance between the latest litigation and a looming mid-March deadline Brown has set for contract agreements.

"The filing schedule is set by the court," said state attorneys' union lawyer Patrick Whalen. "Contract talks and the furlough litigation are totally separate things. And we understand that this governor didn't start this mess."

Former union attorney Ron Yank, now the state's top labor negotiator as head of Brown's Department of Personnel Administration, said that the new litigation doesn't signal that contract talks are in trouble.

Brown has proposed a 2011-12 budget that includes saving $308 million by negotiating cheaper labor deals. Failing that, the unions' 63,000 members will stay on furlough.

Yank said he's "cautiously optimistic" that all the unions will reach labor pacts by the deadline, which would make pointless the unions' request that Judge Steven A. Brick stop furloughs.

"But I can't guarantee when there will be contracts," Yank said. "Their move (to stop furloughs) is what I'd do were I in their shoes."

Professional Engineers in California Government; California Association of Professional Scientists; California Correctional Peace Officers Association; and California Attorneys, The International Union of Operating Engineers, state Bargaining Unit 13, Administrative Law Judges and Hearing Officers in State Employment are the union plaintiffs in the lawsuit.

The Association of California State Supervisors, which speaks on behalf of management-level exempt workers, has joined the unions.

One union without a contract, the California Statewide Law Enforcement Association, did not join the other unions in the lawsuit. CSLEA general manager Kasey Clark said Thursday that the union, which covers a broad swath of public safety employees, is very close to reaching a contract.

"Based on where we are in bargaining, the timing of participating in new litigation on furloughs didn't make sense," Clark said.

A hearing in the matter is scheduled for April 8 in Alameda Superior Court.

Editor's Note: The print version of this story omitted The International Union of Operating Engineers, state Bargaining Unit 13, from the list of unions filing the lawsuit. Updated 1 p.m., March 4, 2011.

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