State Employee Pay Raise Update

Updated March 19, 2010

Take Action and Send a Letter To Your Legislators To Protect the Pay Increase

Latest News:Pay Increase Safe - For Now
The Senate failed to pass the resolution with the required 2/3rds majority of votes to reject the pay raise, for now.  The vote was 22 Yeas/15-Nays/1-Not Voting.  The concurrent resolution was not adopted, 2/3 of the members serving not voting therefor, as follows:
Roll Call No. 83
Yeas—22
Allen-R, Garcia-R, Kahn-R, Richardville-R, Birkholz-R, George-R, Kuipers-R, Sanborn-R, Bishop-R, Gilbert-R, McManus-R, Stamas-R, Brown-R, Hardiman-R, Nofs-R, Switalski-D, Cassis-R, Jansen-R, Pappageorge-R, Van Woerkom-R, Cropsey-R, Jelinek-R
Nays—15
Anderson-D, Cherry-D, Hunter-D, Scott-D, Barcia-D, Clark-Coleman-D, Jacobs-D, Thomas-D, Basham-D, Clarke-D, Olshove-D, Whitmer-D, Brater-D, Gleason-D, Prusi-D
Excused—0
Not Voting—1
Patterson-R

Kudos to Senators Whitmer, Cherry, Hunter, Prusi, Patterson and Jacobs who spoke on behalf of state employees.

A big thumbs down to Senators Jelinek, Switalski, Hardiman, Garcia, Pappageorge, Brown, Stamas, Bishop, and Cropsey who spoke against state employees.   Read some of the comments from the Senate floor.

The vote could be reconsidered so please continue to send letters to your legislators and call them to let them know the sacrifices state employees have made and that state employees are also voters.  Also, take a moment to thank those legislators who took a stand for you and voted to protect your pay raise.  Members have sent 870 letters so far.  Please keep them coming!

Executive Vice President Phil Thompson Letter to the Editor in Crain's Detroit Business

What Has Happened So Far?:Rep. Chuck Moss (R-Birmingham) introduced House Concurrent Resolution 42 on Tuesday. This resolution would reject the unionized state employees negotiated 3% pay increase scheduled to take effect October 1. This 3% wage increase was part of a three year contract negotiated and ratified in 2007. The 3 year contract included a 0% wage increase the 1st year, 1% the second year and a 3% for the upcoming final year.

What Has Been Done So Far:
The Coalition of State Employee Unions has sent a letter to every Representative and Senator urging them to preserve the negotiated 3 percent pay raise that state employees are set to receive on October 1, 2010.  View the letter here (pdf)

What Can I Do?SEIU is encouraging all members to send a letter to their respective legislator, both representative and senator, encouraging them to vote NO on House Concurrent Resolution 42 which would nullify the negotiated 3 percent wage increase that unionized state employees are set to receive on October 1, 2010.

Take action by sending a letter to your legislator to protect the pay raise

What are Politicians Saying About State Employee Pay?:Letters from Legislators on the Pay Increase (updated 3/4/2010)

BISHOP VOWS REVOTE ON RESCINDING 3% RAISE FOR EMPLOYEES (GONGWER)
The 3 percent pay raise that state employees are scheduled to receive October 1 remains at risk despite the Senate's failure Wednesday to rescind the increase.

Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop (R-Rochester) promised that the Republican-led Senate would continue trying to repeal the raise until the time to do so under the Constitution expires April 11.

"We can't afford to let this go," Mr. Bishop said after the vote. "If we have to take a vote every day until April 11, which is the final date, we're going to do it. We've got to get this done."

Republican Candidates for Governor State Their Views on State Employee Pay
“In the first face-to-face debate between the Republicans' two gubernatorial frontrunners, some significant differences emerged between Attorney General Mike COX and U.S. Rep. Pete HOEKSTRA (R-Holland).

Speaking at a Grand Rapids event put on by the statewide organization for insurance agents, both Cox and Hoekstra said they would go after more pay concessions from state workers beyond rejecting the scheduled 3 percent pay raise for unionized civil servants that lawmakers may vote to disapprove as early as next week.

Hoekstra told the audience that his staff in Washington expected a pay increase, but he gave them none. He said he would try to slice another 5 to 7 percent of the salaries of state workers on top of axing the 3 percent raise unions bargained for three years ago.

Cox said he has a request pending before the state Civil Service Commission to reduce his own staff's salaries by 5 percent, and he said he would support the same cut for the rest of the state work force.”

MIRS Newsletter, 2/24/2010