Holden pay boost targets union workers

'CRITICAL CLASSES'

By Kelly Wiese ~ The Associated Press

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Gov. Bob Holden has proposed pay raises of up to 10 percent for state employees in what he describes as low-paid, high-turnover jobs -- people largely represented by unions that have politically supported the Democratic governor.

Holden's pay plan generally mirrors what unions requested and exceeds the recommendations of a state personnel board, according to documents reviewed by The Associated Press.

Republican legislative leaders are expressing outrage, but Holden makes no apologies for his proposal lining up with union priorities.

"We're talking about the lowest-paid workers in our system," Holden said in an interview. "The unions made a very good case for the lack of pay that some people were receiving. ... I want to help all employees at the low end of the economic ladder."

Under Holden's budget plan for the upcoming fiscal year, all 61,000 state employees would receive at least a 2 percent pay raise. But 16,000 employees deemed to be in "critical classes" would receive more -- some a 4 percent raise, others a 10 percent increase.

Records from state budget and administration offices showed that 65 percent of the workers targeted by Holden for higher raises are represented by union bargaining units.

And of those, nearly 75 percent are represented by the Service Employees International Union or the American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees union, two of Holden's most consistent financial supporters.

SEIU branches from 12 states contributed $29,950 to Holden's campaign committee during 2002 and 2003, according to state campaign finance records. AFSCME branches from 10 states donated $22,650 to Holden during that time. AFSCME also contributed $10,000 to help retire Holden's debt for his 2001 inaugural.

Plus, AFSCME and SEIU each contributed $100,000 to the Democratic State Committee last year to help finance Democratic ads supporting Holden's budget plan while the governor was locked in a special session battle with Republican lawmakers.

House budget chairman Carl Bearden said the governor's plan sets a double standard, with those belonging to unions earning larger pay raises and many other workers receiving less.

The legislature has the final say on salaries, and Bearden said he does not intend to follow Holden's proposal.

"As far as coming up with artificial issues like we see in the recommendations, we're not going to be doing that," said Bearden, R-St. Charles. "They've done a good job of crafting and covering what they've done with the 'critical' positions. But that's not going to happen."

Under Holden's plan, the standard 2 percent pay increase for state employees would cost about $46 million, according to the state budget office, with the extra raise for certain workers costing another $14 million. The "critical classes" of workers receiving larger raises include many direct-care providers in mental health institutions, veterans homes and prisons.

Ignoring advice

In proposing extra pay raises, Holden many times went against the recommendation of the Personnel Advisory Board, a governor-appointed panel that suggests pay levels. In 22 job classifications, from nursing assistants to probation officers, Holden suggested a higher pay raise than the board 16 times, and was in line with or higher than recommendations from the unions every time.

Sen. Carl Vogel, chairman of the Senate Ways and Means Committee, said the proposal to further increase the pay of employees largely represented by unions is "grossly unfair."

He said the state undertook a major study years ago to ensure that employees in a given job class -- typists, for example -- get paid the same no matter the agency they work in. The governor's plan would undo that fairness, Vogel said.

"It takes us a significant step backwards," said Vogel, R-Jefferson City.

In June 2001, Holden signed an executive order expanding union powers by granting collective bargaining rights to many state employees. Holden's order allows unions to engage in binding arbitration on personnel disputes and allows the deduction of union service fees from the paychecks of nonunion employees to cover the costs of collective bargaining from which they benefit.

AFSCME and SEIU both have taken advantage of Holden's collective bargaining order to negotiate new contracts that include the service fee deductions. Together, they represent about 7,300 employees, from patient care providers to maintenance workers to parole officers and other professionals in agencies including the Mental Health Department, veterans homes and the Department of Corrections.