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Judge Rules Illinois State Workers Can Keep Jobs for Now

September 29, 2009

More than 2,600 state employees who faced layoffs can stay on the job following a court decision in a lawsuit brought by AFSCME Council 31.

A preliminary injunction, issued Sept. 28 by a judge of the First Judicial Circuit Court in Johnson County, blocks the state from carrying out the budget-cutting layoffs pending resolution of three union grievances, including one over outsourcing. More than 500 workers – mostly state prison employees – would have been laid off Sept. 30.

Gov. Pat Quinn (D) says the state will appeal the ruling.

Council 31 argued that the Quinn administration failed to complete bargaining with the union over the impact of layoffs, such as the health and safety risks posed to workers in already understaffed prisons. The council has warned that threatened job cuts would harm vital services, erode public safety and drive up overtime costs.

The council also contends that state employees should be performing work now being done by contractors.

“AFSCME calls on Governor Quinn to use this opportunity to revisit his ill-advised layoff plan,” says Council 31 Exec. Director Henry Bayer, also an International vice president. “He should rescind the layoffs, protect vital services and save jobs. To save money, he should look at these tens of millions of dollars in private contracts, eliminating those that aren’t needed and bringing in-house work that should be done by state employees.”

Bayer says Quinn also should hire public employees to reduce costly overtime. In June alone, for example, Department of Corrections employees worked more than 145,000 hours of overtime.

“The real root of this issue is the state budget crisis,” says Bayer. “The governor and every state lawmaker should commit to passing comprehensive tax reform that raises adequate revenue to fund essential services and preserve the jobs of those who provide them.”

To learn more, read this story in the Chicago Tribune. Download the suit (PDF) and court exhibits (PDF).

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