Excluded employees will not get personal holidays to replace two that were cut
After getting some good news from DPA recently -- that excluded employees may take their furlough time in one-hour increments -- the news from our April 7 DPA meet and confer kind of burst our bubble: Contrary to what we had previously been made to understand, excluded employees are not eligible to replace the two holidays the governor cut with floating holidays (which SEIU has negotiated). The holiday takeaways -- Lincoln's birthday and Columbus Day -- are written into the budget bill and cannot be changed except through bargaining or a law change, we were told. Excluded employees can have their furlough reduced and per diem increased -- but only if the bargaining units they're tied to negotiate those provisions. For example, if SIEU's contract is ratified, excluded employees tied to SEIU's bargaining units will get the one-day furlough and the per diem increase but will not get the two holidays or lower health care premiums that SEIU members get. No other bargaining units have yet ratified new contracts.
If you have a question you'd like us to answer, please continue to use the email form at right. Below that form, we've posted the major documents that have been issued pertaining to the furloughs. ACSS wishes the best to all state workers during this crisis. We will continue to keep up with the published furlough news on our home page Daily Blog.
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The most recently updated question will always be at the top of the list. Check back often. We are adding new answers daily. You can also search for furlough-related documents on the DPA web site and on the CA.GOV site.
Yes, you may use your furlough time in hourly increments.
Use the letters FH for furlough hours on line 7f.
The answer is mixed. Even though your CalPERS deductions are lower, your full base salary will be used to compute your CalPERS retirement; the amount of the pay-in won't be relevant. Social Security, though, is based on your actual earnings.
Excluded employees' salaries and working conditions are set by the Department of Personnel Administration and the Legislature. We have scheduled a meeting with DPA next week to ask that excluded employees be given, at minimum, the same package rank and file are getting. We will post and disseminate more information as we have it.
No. Your pension will be calculated on your salary before the furlough. Even though your pay is being temporarily cut, your base salary remains the same.
From DPA: No, you can't substitute other leave for your furlough days.
From DPA: Golden parachutes are not on the table at this time.
From DPA: All employees, included excluded employees, are being given furlough days off.
Sr. Labor Rep Bonnie Morris from DPA: Employees are expected to take their furlough days as they occur each month. However, if delays happen because of a department's operational needs, the days off may be postponed. Then employees would have through June 30, 2012, to redeem them. The DPA does not want a lot of employees redeeming furlough time all at once.
From Bonnie Morris: Yes, you pay taxes only on the money you actually earn.