Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 27, Number 1, 1 January 2010 — Puhlie servants or self-serving? [ARTICLE]

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Puhlie servants or self-serving?

In July 2009, Gov. Linda Lingle imposed Exeeutive OrderNo. 09-04 requiring a two days per month furlough for all state workers for the period Aug. 1, 2009, to June 30, 2011. Exeeutive OrderNo. 09-06 issued on Oet. 22, 2009, the day before most state furloughs began, CANCELLED all furloughs between Nov. 1, 2009, through June 30, 2010, for all exeeutive braneh offieials, whieh inelude the governor, lieutenant governor, department heads, assistants, deputies and exeeutive offieers. Exeeutive Order No. 09-06 orders the exeeutive braneh offieials to take only one furlough day per month beginning July 1, 2010, to June 30, 2011. For the entire furlough period Aug. 1, 2009, to June 30, 2011, Gov. Lingle and her exeeutive braneh offieers are required to take a total of only 12 furlough days. For the same time period, the average state worker is required to take 42 furlough days. While the exeeutive offiee offieials had a 5 pereent reduetion in pay, the reduetion in pay for the average state worker eaused by the furloughs ranges from 8 pereent to 1 1 pereent and more. Are the governor and her appointed department heads, deputies, assistants and exeeutive offieials doing their fair part to help the state's fiseal erisis? Absolutely not. What is fair about a state worker losing 1 1 pereent of a gross annual ineome of $28,800 and state exeeutives losing 5 pereent of annual

ineomes between $80,000 and $120,000? Mary Peahi Aiea, 0'ahu

ka leo kaiāulultlllr! " *■

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