San Diego Union-Tribune editorial writer Chris Reed asked the state controller's office how it was possible for the state's computers to furlough state workers, but not pay them minimum wage temporarily.
Last summer, you may recall, state Controller John Chiang said the antiquated computer payroll system could not implement Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's order to pay state workers minimum wage during the budget standoff.
Here's the answer he got from Chiang spokeswoman Hallye Jordan:
1) Furlough order is straightforward in its application by allowing a percentage reduction in pay. Minimum wage had to be independently entered as an hourly figure. Percentage allows the change to apply to all areas of the payroll system, deductions, taxes, withholdings, and retirement. We can reduce by a percentage just as we can quickly adjust all of the components when an employee gets a 5% raise.
2) Furloughs were similar to past pay reduction programs, like the Personal Leave Program, so we have experience setting up this type of program.3) Furloughs are permanent, employees never recoup those dollars after seeing their pay reduced by a furlough. But the minimum wage order would've required the system to shift to a temporary pay schedule, then retroactively make up for the difference down the road and undo all the changes made when an hourly wage was entere(d).
4) We also had more of a heads up on the furlough issue, and the SCO staff had been working with DPA to implement furloughs on affected employees.
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