News & Events

Information about pay cuts and furloughs

This week, the Arizona State Legislature passed budgets for the current fiscal year (FY 2010, which ends June 30, 2010) and the next fiscal year (FY 2011, which runs from July 1, 2010, to June 30, 2011). Among other provisions, the budget eliminates the performance-pay program, which provided you with 2.75% pay bonuses if certain performance measures were met. The budget also requires furlough days, which AFSCME encouraged lawmakers to use instead of pay cuts.

2.75% performance pay

Each pay period, state employees would receive a 2.75% performance pay in their paychecks if they or their units or agencies met certain performance criteria. (If you look at your pay stub or direct-deposit advice, you will see the pay as a line item for wages.) The Legislature will be eliminating this performance pay in a few months. Although the legislation says that the effective date of eliminating the pay is May 29, 2010, the legislation will not be effective by the time. Therefore, it probably will be one of the first paychecks you receive in July that is affected. Although you may lose the 2.75% performance pay (if you or your unit was regularly meeting the performance criteria), your base pay will not be affected.

Furloughs

Nearly all state employees will be required to take furloughs. You probably will be required to take one furlough day in June 2010 and six furlough days between July 1, 2010, and June 30, 2011. For most agencies, the Arizona Department of Administration will determine which days will be furlough days, so you probably will not be able to select your furlough day.

Since lawmakers were considering a 5% pay cut, AFSCME encouraged lawmakers to use furloughs instead of pay cuts. If lawmakers did pay cuts, they may not have wanted to return pay levels back to the original amounts at the end of fiscal year 2011. But with furloughs, your base pay would remain the same. In addition, it's an issue of fairness: if state employees will be making less money, they should not be required to do the same level of work.

For more information, contact 602-252-6501 or info [at] azafscme [dot] org. To return to the News & Events page, please click here.