Furloughs for state workers a modest start

In The Spokesman-Review’s article about Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire signing a law that orders some state workers to take 10 unpaid days over the next 14 months was this:

“While most bill-signings are attended by sponsors and others ready to celebrate a new law, no one showed up to take credit or applaud the enactment of the furlough bill.”

Well, we are applauding, even if it is the sort of polite clapping seen after a tournament golfer taps in a putt for par. No, nobody should rejoice in the affected workers’ adversity, but this action has become normal and necessary for employers since the economy began shedding 8.4 million jobs over the past two years. More than half of the states have instituted furloughs. Two-thirds of cities have imposed furloughs, layoffs and hiring freezes, according to a National League of Cities survey.

Government has been slower to react than the private sector, which has resulted in a tax base less able to sustain government salaries and benefits. It’s a long road back to the employment rate that predated the recession. Some economists wonder whether the U.S. economy will ever get back to the 4.6 percent jobless rate of 2007. State and local governments need to plan accordingly. They cannot assume the “good times” will return.

As a practical matter, this means permanent reductions in work force size and more realistic pay and benefit packages. As the governor said in March, “I am prepared to open up the issue of 88-12. I am prepared to open up the issue of deductibles and co-pays,” she said.

That’s good to know, because taxpayers who have been hammered by the recession are not prepared to keep paying for government benefits that are much better than their own. Private sector workers – that is, the ones who work for large organizations that have health coverage – are more used to 76-24, meaning they pay for 24 percent of their health coverage, which is double the proportion that state workers pay.

Also, a U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics survey of West Side workers shows that government pays more than the private sector for comparable jobs in several fields. So those workers have better benefits and better pay. Even the announced furloughs affect only about 25 percent of the state’s work force for a savings of about $50 million.

All of this shows that there is room for state government to pick up even more gains in labor costs.

So while we applaud the furlough law, it ought to be viewed as an easy par on an easy hole. The tougher shots lie ahead, and the governor and the Legislature cannot avoid them. The gallery is watching too closely.