MDN.ORG:
Missouri Digital News
MDN.ORG
Mo. Digital News
Missouri Digital News
MDN.ORG:
Mo. Digital News
MDN.ORG:
Missouri Digital News
MDN.ORG:
Missouri Digital News
MDN.ORG
Mo. Digital News
Missouri Digital News
MDN.ORG:
Mo. Digital News
MDN.ORG:
Missouri Digital News
JEFFERSON CITY - Judy Murray is one of thousands of state workers who are unhappy with the budget proposed by Gov. Bob Holden.
This year is even tougher than in the past because state employees are facing their second straight year with no pay raise. That trouble is compounded by higher health insurance premiums being paid by state employees.
"It seems like it's a pay cut," Murray said. "We're not happy about the no pay raises and health insurance going up, but we understand it."
If the governor's budget goes through as proposed, state employees will get no raises for the second consecutive year, and 747 state jobs will be eliminated.
State employees are already being mistreated by the state, according to Andrew English, spokesman for AFSCME, a union that represents 15,000 state employees in Missouri.
"We have staffing shortages, (and) workers are not being paid their overtime now," English said.
English said while he is concerned about what next year's health plan will bring for employees, he is already upset about the current plan.
"The plan implemented this year was already horrendous with employees' premiums going up," he said. "Most people effectively took a pay cut because their premiums went up so much."
English described a situation in many state agencies where workers are being asked to work overtime and told they will be allowed to use that as compensation time when more workers are hired. The problem is, more workers are never hired, English said.
Murray and many other state workers will likely be forced to spend more money for health coverage when state government's HMO contracts are renewed next calendar year.
In the Corrections Department alone, employees are owed $5.8 million of compensation time they have built up over the last year. And due to the staffs that English says are already too short, corrections employees usually don't get to take holidays off, English said.
"It's been building up for over a year," English said. "There are a lot of people who would work voluntarily if they knew they would get paid, but they don't know anymore."
The state will have to spend another $4.8 million just to cover the rising costs of fringe benefits for the Highway Patrol. The governor is also proposing to spend another $27.2 million on rising health care costs for state employees.
The governor has proposed another $3.1 million is proposed to fund health programs for retirees, as well as $5.6 million that would set up a reserve for a state HMO plan for parts of the state that are currently underserved.
Murray said she is worried about layoffs coming soon if the state budget picture worsens.
"At this point, I'm grateful just to have my job, to be quite honest."