Gov. Bill Ritter this morning vetoed a bill that would have given more regular pay increases to state employees who met basic performance benchmarks.
In his veto message, Ritter lamented the current pay-for-performance system of pay increases that he said are rarely funded and unevenly distributed among state workers.
But he criticized House Bill 1409 for putting automatic pay increases into the state budget for legislative approval each year.
“If this economic downturn has taught us anything, it is that budgetary flexibility is necessary in order to meet the challenges we face in difficult economic times,” Ritter wrote. “It is unwise to put another portion of the state budget on automatic pilot. I fully acknowledge that state employees, along with employees in other sectors, have sacrificed during this current economic downturn.”
He said he has directed the state Department of Personnel and Administration to study pay inequities and develop a plan to resolve the problem. Ritter will submit the department’s plan for legislative approval just before he leaves office in January, he said.
The union commonly called Colorado WINS criticized Ritter’s decision saying it hurts the state’s ability to hire and retain a reliable workforce.
“Gov. Ritter failed to stand up for taxpayers and working families today. He failed to institute a good business practice to ensure that Coloradans get the best services possible, whether it’s safe bridges and roads or care for our veterans,” Pattie Johnston, President of Colorado Workers for Innovation and New Solutions (WINS), said in a statement.
House Bill 1409 would have qualified state employees who are meeting performance standards for 12 years of stepped pay increases, but any pay hikes still would have to be approved by lawmakers.
Pay increases would not have taken effect for at least three years, assuming the state had money to fund them.
State employees have had no raises the past two years and had furloughs in the current fiscal year ending in June. They face 2.5 percent pay cuts in the next fiscal year, on top of higher contributions they must make to their pensions.
Jessica Fender: 303-954-1244 or jfender@denverpost.com.
