Democratic Reps. Shirley Ringo of Moscow and Phylis King of Boise will hear from state employees they say have been shorted by the Legislature and Gov. Butch Otter’s inattention. Ringo and King both sit on the Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee.
“Employees have not had the opportunity to be heard for five years,” Ringo said, saying the last time the Change in Employee Compensation Committee met was to prepare the fiscal 2009 budget.
The hearing is set for Monday, from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. in Room 42 on the east side of the Capitol’s Garden level, where the House Revenue & Taxation Committee meets.
Otter has recommended no money for pay increases in fiscal 2014, after a 2 percent boost in fiscal 2013. Ringo noted that in fiscal 2010 and 2011, there was no money for pay increases. In fiscal 2009, a 5 percent cut was applied. Ringo says employees lost $12.2 million in wages taking unpaid furloughs during the recession.
Ringo said lawmakers have largely ignored Idaho law’s provision aimed to keep state pay competitive: “It is hereby declared to be legislative intent that regardless of specific budgetary conditions from year to year, it is vital to fund necessary compensation adjustments each year to maintain market competitiveness in the compensation system. In order to provide this funding commitment in difficult fiscal conditions, it may be necessary to increase revenues, or to prioritize and eliminate certain functions or programs in state government, or to reduce the overall number of state employees in a given year, or any combination of such methods.”
The news release from the Democrats follows:
State Employees and Teachers Invited to Speak to Legislators About Wages and Work Conditions.
Boise—Policymakers need to hear from state workers and teachers to make good sound policy. That’s obvious. But state workers lack the opportunity to speak directly with legislators. Two Representatives, Shirley Ringo of Moscow, and Phylis King of Boise, are inviting state employees and teachers to speak to them regarding working conditions and wages Monday at the Capitol in Boise. All legislators have also been invited to attend.
DATE: Monday, February 18
TIME: 4:00 TO 6:00 pm
LOCATION: Idaho Capitol, East Wing Room 42
Managers can’t make good decisions without paying attention to the people who actually do the work. But the Idaho Legislature no longer holds an annual Change in Employee Compensation (CEC) hearing. Reps. Ringo and King want employees, past and present, as well as the general public, to speak up. These lawmakers will make sure all testimony is presented to their fellow elected leaders.
Employees should bring every issue: wage adequacy, condition of state buildings, workload, training issues, technology adequacy, etc. For Idaho’s government to be efficient and effective, elected leaders must hear from workers who are closest to the public and understand how to improve our state’s public services.
For people who care to testify:
- Casual clothing is fine.
- If you comment, keep comments brief.
- Be sure to sign in.
The press is invited and encouraged to attend. For those who cannot make it to the statehouse, please send comments to pking@house.idaho.gov.
For more information, contact:
Representative Phylis King Representative Shirley Ringo
pking@house.idaho.gov sringo@house.idaho.gov
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I haven’t had a pay raise since around 2005. The only time my pay changed was when I left a job to take a better paying job.
May be these state workers with nice collectively bargained benefits & retirement packages don’t know how good they have it?
Try paying your own health insurance that is individually underwritten with a 10k deductible because work provides no reasonably priced insurance.
Let’s see if the Republicans can live up to their motto and do their best reduce some government. Most state jobs/funtions could actually be hired out to the private sector which would ultimately boost our econmomy.
1. Your inability to secure a raise could be attributable to dozens of reasons, including your incompetence or the fact that your boss considers you overpaid anyway. Whatever the reason, it has absolutely nothing to do with the subject at hand, which is the paucity of raises for public employees. Or are you suggesting that everyone should engage in the race to the bottom with you? Or that your personal, individual, anecdotal experience has some sort of universal applicability?
2. Your ignorance of the state employee system is showing. What collectively bargained benefits and retirement packages are you referring to? I’m a state employee; no one collectively bargains for anything on my behalf, same as for the majority of state employees.
3. What do your poor career choices and selection of a crappy employer have to do with anything?
Nice to know you have some experience on the topic James.
Nice to note you are a state employee surfing the news forum at 11:15am. On early lunch I suppose.
As for you current pay raise situation:
What do your poor career choices and selection of a crappy employer have to do with anything- that the taxpayers should have to pay extra for?
People’s income goes down- tax collections should go down- state wages should go down too.
Perhaps you haven’t deserve a pay raise since 2005. What does your compensation and inability to earn more pay have to do with state employees. I suspect after reading your posts that most state employees are more qualified and deserving of more compensation yhan yourself.
Glad to see I hit the hornets nest here.
Turns out HP isn’t exactly a crappy employee, and prior to 2005 I had received pay raises of about 8% per year for several years. Then the economy kind of tanked. After that, I have had pay CUTS nearly every year for the past 7 years. As another person has mentioned below, state employees should be glad they haven’t seen as big of pay cuts as the private sector has seen.
I would support pay raises for government workers once we see some increases in the private sector or an increase in productivity just like how salary considerations in the private sector.
The public sector is unique in that the stability of the positions and the benefits packages are what you get in exchange for lower pay. That is how all government jobs seem to function.
When I was a contractor software developer working at the Idaho State Police, I made more per hour than the salaried full time employees, but I had no benefits of any kind. We also were laid off after just 1.5yrs on the job but the salaried people were not. So again, that is a demonstration of the difference between private sector and public sector job security.
State employees should be glad they didn’t a REDUCED salary like most of the nation’s working class. Their song is getting tiring.
Popkey, how have the salaries been at the Statesman for the last 4 years?
Pimp2, you did read that employees did take a 5% pay CUT in 2009, right? There’s enough problems in government as it is: we should be able to retain quality employees to run things. If everyone runs off for a higher-paying job, who’s left to untangle red tape when you need it?
5%? Whew! Devasting I bet.
I took a 9% pay cut just in 2005 which is what started my process to finding a different job that paid more. That free market system worked pretty well.
Jason,
Just because your pay is cut does not necessarily correspond to cutting the pay of all state employees. Some state jobs perhaps in the IT sector may be similar to your situation. But comparing your job to all state positions across the board is ludacrous. Your flawed logic may be one of the factors holding your career back coupled with the fact that HP is not what it used to be. I suspect that some state employees are probably underpaid and others are overpaid. But I am not so naive to believe that state government only attracts second string personnel and that its benefit package is the only reason that its employees remain.
Don’t worry Phil, I got a $60% pay raise over the past 3 years by moving to a different that valued the skill set I provide. That pay raise is more like 110% pay raise when you consider the benefits the new company supplies.
So no, as you assumed, there is no deficiency in logic that has held my career back. Quite the contrary as it turns out.