Courting the AFSCME vote
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Courting the AFSCME vote

Posted by JP on Fri, 09/04/2009 - 08:17

On Thursday, officials from Gov. Pat Quinn's office met with leaders of the state employees' union to discuss cost savings and personnel moves.

According to the union, Quinn wants the union to re-open its contract and agree to pay cuts upward of 15 percent, which would still require nearly 1,000 layoffs. The union said "no" and Quinn's office put out the following statement:

"By being unwilling to re-open the contract, we are now forced to proceed with the layoffs."

Contrast that to Dan Hynes' budget plan. Hynes is running against Quinn for the Democratic nomination for governor next year.

Hynes' put out a plan that calls for rolling back agency spending to 2005 levels. I asked him if that meant he wanted the employees' union to agree to pay and other concessions to get back to those levels.

No. Hynes' said his plan doesn't rely on union pay reductions.

The battle lines are already getting pretty clear in this race.

Really?

"No Joke", I am a state employee. I work at the Pontiac Correctional Center. At work nothing scares me but, because we state employees have been demonized so much by the media with half truths and flat out lies, wearing my uniform outside of work scares the hell out of me. I doubt there will be to many state employees "knocking on doors." Hynes says he wants to return the state payroll to 2005 levels. As soon as he does that the hiring of new guards will stop just like it did under Chicagovich. The overtime will once again be staggering, and once again the blame will be put soley on the backs of us greedy state employees by the media.

Posted by richstateemployee on Sat, 09/05/2009 - 20:52
Layoffs

I've heard of no recommended layoffs in the General Assembly staffing? What does all that staff do when the legislature isn't in sessions? Why doesn't the general assembly pay for their own district offices with their "busting-at-the-seems" campaign funds? Lets have a 15% salary reduction for all elected state officials! For most of them, this is a second job.

Posted by tm1950 on Sat, 09/05/2009 - 05:36
Quinn Courting AFSCME vote!

This is a joke right? Right? After what he is doing to AFSCME and state employees covered by the AFSCME contract, I think it's a pretty sure bet he will not get AFSCME support. It's time for someone in state government to have the stones to stand up and say "we are going to quit punishing people for taking a job with the State of Illinois and give them the wages and benefits they deserve for serving Illinois."

Posted by Jwatrlily on Fri, 09/04/2009 - 10:18
No joke

Just a few months ago AFSCME thought Quinn was great with his call for a tax hike to save state government.
The point was Hynes is strategically positioning himself for the primary. Thousands of green-shirted AFSCME members knocking on doors and stirring support isn't a bad thing for a Democratic candidate to have in a Democratic primary, especially when the other guy is talking layoffs and pay cuts.

Posted by JP on Fri, 09/04/2009 - 13:21