State workers were outraged and anxious on Tuesday after learning that Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger wants to lay off 5,000 of them in the coming weeks.

Although the administration didn't break down which departments would lose jobs, it did say the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, which runs the state prison system, would lose the most positions.

And one official said the state may need to cut more jobs if California's recession worsens and the state's general fund revenue keeps dwindling.

"This may not be the only layoff," said Vickie Bradshaw, deputy chief of staff and Cabinet secretary to the governor.

That possibility unnerves Justin Salenik, who started his state career with the Education Department last year.

"This really worries me," Salenik said Thursday afternoon as he waited for a light-rail train. "If they do more, I'd be one of the first to go."

State officials offered few details about the layoffs, saying they wanted to get the details to employees through workplace channels first.

Finance Director Mike Genest said that "there is no way to know" exactly how much money the government will save by cutting what amounts to about 5 percent of the 100,000 state jobs paid from general fund money.

The layoffs are based on seniority. Workers who get notice that their job is going to be axed can look for other jobs in state bureaucracy funded by other sources, such as the Employment Development Department (federal funds) or DMV (vehicle and license fees).

Corrections is the $84 billion general fund's biggest personnel expense, with about 63,000 employees and an operating budget of about $10 billion, most of that from the general fund.

Salaries, mostly for correctional officers, have added more than $1 billion to the department's expenses in the past decade.

The California Correctional Peace Officers Association, which represents about 33,000 prison officers, could not be reached for comment Thursday.

The process from formal layoff notice to termination can take up to 120 days, but "we don't like to focus on the last day," Bradshaw said, since the sooner employees shift into other jobs, the sooner the savings begin.

EDD worker Adrienne Suffin said she expects some state workers facing termination will apply for jobs in her department.

"When there is a threat of layoffs, people will want to come here," she said.

Thursday's announcement prompted the state's largest public workers union, Service Employees International Union Local 1000, to criticize Schwarzenegger for ignoring what it says are other ways to curb expenses.

The union has suggested a list of policy changes it says would save billions of dollars, such as cutting down on big service contracts with private companies and giving the work to state employees.

"The governor said, 'If you have ideas, come forward with a paper and pencil,' " said SEIU Local 1000 President Yvonne Walker. "Well, Local 1000 is ready to meet with the governor right now to talk about the $9.5 billion in potential savings and efficiencies we've been promoting for the past 18 months."

Schwarzenegger said Thursday that he viewed cutting state jobs as a drastic but necessary step to solving the "budget puzzle."

The state's slumping economy has forced many families to make difficult financial decisions, and "we have to show we have the same discipline," the governor said.

But many state workers believe Schwarzenegger's budget just adds to the already unfair financial burden they bear. In February, about 238,000 of them started taking two unpaid days off each month, a controversial furlough policy mandated by Schwarzenegger aimed at saving about $1.3 billion in wages through June 2010.

"People are really feeling that they're scapegoats," said Marie Harder, an SEIU union activist and Public Health Department employee. "Around here people are saying, 'Why does everybody want to take it out on me?' "

Besides layoffs, Schwarzenegger's budget calls for saving $132.2 million starting in January by contracting lower costs for state worker health insurance.

The revised budget requires new state hires to work for at least 25 years before qualifying for free lifetime health benefits. Current policy sets eligibility at 20 years of service.

Call The Bee's Jon Ortiz, (916) 321-1043.