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How furloughs are working in the House

• Published June 05, 2009

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When it comes to using furloughs to stave off reductions in force, a couple obstacles arise: unions aren't so keen on them, and you need a lot of unpaid time off to make up for an entire position.

We examined the situation in more depth today:

I talked with Baker about just how furloughs are playing out in the House.

"It's very workable. It saves us a ton of money. The advantage is we don’t have to specifically reduce some one’s pay, but in the end it is a reduction in that person’s salary. What we're doing is giving them some time," she said. Salary reductions, she noted, are permanent, and come with no time off.

The week off must be taken each fiscal year. Employees have to clear their furlough days with their supervisors, but the only hard rule is no one will take their time during session. And with committee days moved back to the first week of October, August is looking like a good time to take some extra time.

"I don't think there's going to be this mass exodus for the entire month," Baker added. Many people in the House need every paycheck to meet their bills, so they can’t afford to miss an entire week of pay.

"Most people are talking about taking an extra Monday or an extra Friday off," she said.

Baker also noted that legislative staff work notoriously long hours during session, and mandatory leave is actually forcing people to take some down time.

"We always have the problem of people just not using their leave. And now I’m hearing people say this is the year I’m going to Italy or I’m going to build Habitat for Humanity houses, or whatever," she said.