The State Worker

UPDATED at 5:25 p.m.: San Francisco Superior Court Judge Charlotte Woolard has tentatively ruled in favor of SEIU Local 1000, finding that state insurance code "exempts State Compensation Insurance Fund employees from the furlough."

Click here to read the tentative ruling.

The case mirrors an earlier lawsuit successfully pressed by California Attorneys, Administrative Law Judges and Hearing Officers in State Employment. About 500 State Fund legal staff have been back to full time hours and wages since July 9 as a result of the ruling by Judge Peter Busch. Those employees also received backpay for wages lost to furlough.

Schwarzenegger has appealed the Busch decision, which was the first furlough lawsuit that he lost. We assume the administration will appeal this decision as well.

In the current case, Woolard also ruled in favor of State Fund President Jan Frank, who had filed a cross complaint aimed at exempting all of State Fund's 7,900 employees from furlough, not just the 6,000 covered by SEIU Local 1000. Click here to read the Frank complaint.

As expected, Schwarzenegger's attorneys had argued that the case should be heard in Sacramento Superior Court, since that's where Judge Patrick Marlette had issued the first furlough lawsuit decision. (Click here for a refresher on Marlette's Jan. 29 decision.)

Woolard disagreed: "The doctrine of exclusive concurrent jurisdiction does not apply to this matter because the issue in this case was not adjudicated in the Sacramento case."

Attorneys will make oral arguments tomorrow in Woolard's court room at 9:30 a.m. It is possible that the judge could reverse her tentative ruling, but that rarely happens. Still, fund spokeswoman Jennifer Vargen sounded a cautionary note.

"We're pleased with the tentative ruling and we look forward to the hearing tomorrow and having this resolved," Vargen said in a phone conversation with The State Worker this afternoon. "But we would caution that we don't have a final ruling yet."

And nothing will change until the Woolard issues one. For example, Busch ruled in favor of CASE lawsuit on April 15 but didn't issue the final decision until three months later. The State Controller's Office wouldn't adjust payrolll without a final order, so State Fund legal staff remained on a furlough schedule the entire time.

We couldn't connect with the Department of Personnel Administration, which handles furlough litigation for the governor. When we get an administration comment, we'll report it here.

"This is another crack in the governor's illegal furlough scheme," Local 1000 President Yvonne Walker said in a press statement. "We will continue our litigation in all possible venues."