Lingle cuts 3 days a month to all state employees

[macuu222]

I think the main reason why our budget is so bad is because we base our economy on tourism. And when the global recession happened...areas that based their economy on tourism fared the worst. People tend not to travel during a recession...instead they save what money they can and stay close to home. Most states have many sources of income to run state government. We don't have that many. Thats why 3 day furloughs here and only 1 day furloughs in other states. Without tourism...hawaii's government would shrink to levels of the 1950's.


Raising the GET is not a solution to the problem. Yes it raises the money needed to fill the holes in the budget...but at what cost? It taxes everybody in Hawaii (residents and tourists; rich and poor)ON EVERYTHING THEY BUY...and that will reduce tourism even more because we've priced ourselves higher than most tourists are willing to spend on a vacation and that will in turn make many small businesses fold. We would then have the destinction of being the most heavily taxed state in the nation which doesn't do much for attracting tourist dollars in itself. And it also doesn't help tourism much when you have some nut case in North Korea saying he's going to launch a ballistic missile towards Hawaii around the 4th of July!

I was a state employee for 30 years in Alaska. And during that time in the 1990's..the State of Alaska almost went belly up because they based their economy on oil and the price bottomed out so low that they forced all non essential state employees to 11 month contracts. It hurt...but we got through it. And I think that Hawaii state employees can do it also. It just takes alittle sacrifice.

[Chuysmom]

Well maybe we can have more Punaweb potlucks in the future. 'Cause between this 21% cut and my husband being cut to 32 hours a week...we just might need it.[]

Oh P.S. This is collectively approximately 35% of our salary. Can you do without 35%?

Carrie Rojo

http://www.carrierojo.etsy.com


"...So began the massacre of the Shaolin Temple and all sixty of the monks inside at the fists of the White Lotus. And so began the legend of Pai Mei's five-point-palm-exploding-heart technique." - Bill

[oink]

quote:

---

Can you do without 35%?

---

Between my wife and I, yes, apparently we can. But no trip to Hawaii this year!

Pua`a
S. FL
Big Islander to be.

[Seeb]

There is so much waste and fraud that you could easily cut 15% out of the budget without raising tax's or cutting wages legit workers.( thats minus the no show jobs, dead people on the payroll and funded empty positions). since the gov is the largest employer hacking wages to the point that people cant pay there morgages is stupid and destructive. The good ones will leave - there are still jobs on the mainland for engineers, doctors and nurses and the like. and all that will be left here will look like a tropical version of the south Bronx

[Dan De Soto]

Wouldn't the laid off worker qualify for unemployement compensation, Quest(State) medical, and other welfare? I don't see how that would reduce the burden on the State. There are also a ton of State workers on the Eastside of Hawaii. A few months after furloughs or layoffs we can expect to see the recession finally hit Hilo. So far the westside (tourism side) has been the hardest hit with 20 -30 restauranst closed in the past year.

I've read a few but here is one of my favorite books on economic collapse: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1591961...oh_product Its oversimplified but the core principles seem very solid. According to the book this is a financial preshock with the real crisis to America hit 3-5 years fom now.

[Chuysmom]

One thing I did think of today was the loss of business to the downtown area for a sum of 7 weeks out of the year...what kind of repercussions will empty offices cause to restaurants and other shops? Obviously State workers aren't the only ones downtown on Fridays, but it does add up. Hmmm...

Carrie Rojo

http://www.carrierojo.etsy.com


"...So began the massacre of the Shaolin Temple and all sixty of the monks inside at the fists of the White Lotus. And so began the legend of Pai Mei's five-point-palm-exploding-heart technique." - Bill

[macuu222]

yes...laid off state workers will cost the state and local businesses plenty of money in the short term. That is why Lingle is pushing furloughs first.


The reason why hawaii state employees health care is going up so much is because it chose to stick with the largest, most accepted and one of the most most expensive insurance carriers in the country (Blue Cross Blue Shield).

Alaska was in the same boat this year with their state employees and Blue Cross. What they did was put the insurance out to bid. And Wells Fargo insurance won the bid. Not exactly a well know insurance carrier...but everyones benefits remained the same...and more importantly "no insurance premium increases" for the employees. And then all the doctors and hospitals in Alaska had to take Wells Fargo Insurance.

Hawaii state employees screwed up their health care costs by allowing to continue with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Hawaii even though they knew that premiums would be increasing drastically almost 6 months before it happened!!

They chose a proven leader instead of an upstart or more appropriately....They chose a name brand instead of a generic and they have to pay the increase!

[macuu222]

With todays court decision allowing an injunction against furloughs...Where does that leave the state of Hawaii? Is it now going to lay off some 10,000 employees and create an unemployment and welfare nightmare because the court won't allow the state to arbitrailly cut salaries without union agreement? Both Lingle and the state attorney general felt sure the furloughs we're legal. Now I'm just wondering if even layoffs are legal and does Lingle and the Attorney general really know what they are doing. Or is this just a matter of the unions finding a sympathetic judge?

Maybe we'll just wind up like California and start issuing IOU's when the money's gone.

[Bob Orts]

quote:

---

Originally posted by macuu222

Both Lingle and the state attorney general felt sure the furloughs we're legal. Now I'm just wondering if even layoffs are legal and does Lingle and the Attorney general really know what they are doing. Or is this just a matter of the unions finding a sympathetic judge?

---

No, it wasn't a sympathetic Judge; it was as many legislators (including allies of the Governor) warned the governor, an unconstitutional maneuver. The Judge ruling was an issue related to Hawaii's constitution and what the governor was planning to do.

But there's something going on. Many legislators have said the governor’s fiscal plan is laden with misconceptions and that there are many cuts available that have not been addressed by the governor. Couple that with why she isn't going to the unions and saying we have a fiscal emergency, we need to do something, here's the proposal, which are you willing to do? She can place it all on the backs of the union to make the call between layoffs and furloughs. Doing that would put the unions in the position of having to make the tough call. But the negotiations would require the unions to be privy to the state’s finances. If as some legislators have said, the fiscal picture is being distorted by the governor and there’s' a lot of money being kept in the budget that could be cut, the unions will see that and may make it public. I suspect that she doesn't want the true budget picture to be known.

[Chuysmom]

I wholeheartedly agree Bob. She has been throwing out numbers with no proof to back them up. If we are supposed to be responsible to pay the brunt of this bill, shouldn't we be aware of the true numbers?

Perhaps she saw this whole mess coming and figured it would be easier to instill fear into state workers and scare them with 3 days a month so they would eventually settle for 1 or 2. Who knows what she has planned?

Federal money, luxury tax, visitors' tax, cigarettes, gasoline, liquor, internet, hurricane fund...the list goes on and on. There are so many ways and combinations of ways to raise the funds that are needed without making a move that is unconstitutional.



Carrie Rojo

http://www.carrierojo.etsy.com


"You and I must make a pact, we must bring salvation back
Where there is love, I'll be there." MJ