The State Worker: SEIU, Bass denounce Republicans for failing to pass contract bill

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The State Worker

Chronicling civil-service life for California state workers

May 4, 2009

SEIU, Bass denounce Republicans for failing to pass contract bill

Jim Zamora, SEIU, Local 1000 spokesman, just released the union's take on today's Republican refusal to vote for AB-964 in the Assembly.

That's the bill that would put the recently reached collective agreement with the Schwarzenegger administration into law.

It's a prepared statement from Yvonne Walker, Local 1000 President, who said:

"How could 29 Republican legislators refuse to support a bill that saves the state so much money? This bill will save the state $340 million and could lead to nearly $1 billion in savings if applied to all state workers," Walker wrote.

"We negotiated this contract with the governor in good faith to help close the budget shortfall. More than 90 percent of our members voted to ratify this agreement. Once again, Republicans failed to do their jobs."

SEIU, Local 1000, the largest state worker union, says it is now is asking thousands of state workers in nine Republican districts, including residents of Assemblyman Roger Niello's Fair Oaks district, to push their elected representatives to support the bill.

Assembly Speaker Karen Bass issued her own statement:

"Ratifying this agreement would have benefited the people of California by achieving savings in one of our largest group of public employees - savings from salaries, from furloughs, from overtime, and from eliminating holidays," she said.

"I am disappointed that not even a single Republican Assembly member voted to support this cost-saving deal the governor cut with the state workforce," Bass added.

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