In a memo to agencies and departments, Justin Johnson, the secretary of the Agency of Administration, said all new hires must meet his approval. Johnson said an interview he doesn’t want commissioners and secretaries to hire new people at a time when layoffs could be in the offing. Requests for new workers tend to slow when they are required to come across his desk, he said. The story was first reported in the Times Argus.
Johnson takes a jab at VSEA in the memo. He writes that he was “surprised and disappointed” by a VSEA petition that “calls for no cuts in state government spending.”
“The petition indicated that the union will not deal with the administration on labor savings,” Johnson wrote.
“We are concerned that the union is saying “No” before we even have an opportunity to talk,” he wrote. “This approach leaves me very concerned that the administration won’t have an opportunity to take steps, in conjunction with the union, to help minimize any job losses while meeting a balanced budget.”
Steve Howard, the executive director of VSEA, says the $5 million cut is a “tax” on state workers and a reduction in force “is not the right choice.”
The “Fight Back” petition, which workers are distributing at work sites and to members of the public, urges lawmakers to find alternatives to cutting state programs. “We also ask that you respect our collective bargaining agreements, the terms and conditions of which are mutually negotiated and agreed to by state employees and the State.”
State workers have faced tough economic times over the last decade, Howard says, and many are doing the work of two to three people because of understaffing. During the recession, state employees took a pay cut and the number of positions in state government was reduced by roughly 600. In 2010, when Gov. Peter Shumlin took office, the state had a total of 8,768 positions. That year the governor imposed a hiring freeze, and the number dropped to 8,264 by January of 2012. The total number of state workforce positions as of October 2014 was 8,836, according to data from the Department of Human Resources.
Howard says Shumlin and the Legislature should ask the wealthiest Vermonters to pay more in taxes to support the state’s workforce.
“The choice for the Legislature and the governor have is do we want to take money out of the pockets of snow plow drivers and nursing assistants, or do we want to have some courage and ask the people who stood to gain over the last decade to pay more in order to provide the level service for Vermonters they deserve,” Howard said.
“I think it’s going to require some leadership,” Howard continued. “Peter Shumlin has the ability to lead. He’s the leader who says he can get the tough things done. “Now’s the time to stand up and lead we are not adequately funding state government.”
Johnson says his office has reached out to VSEA to set up a meeting. He is concerned, he says, by the petition, because he wants to negotiate with the union, but “I can’t do it on my own.”
Howard says the union will meet with the governor’s office, but “our position is firm.”
“State employees have given and given, and it’s time for folks with more resources to step up to the plate,” he said.
The union has no obligation to renegotiate lower salaries under the contract.
Johnson says he is open to ideas, but the alternative is a reduction in force.
CORRECTION: The total number of state employee positions was 8,836 in 2014, not 8,200 as originally reported.
