U.S. State of California's largest employee union announced on Saturday it has voted to authorize a strike because Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is forcing them to take furlough days, Xinhua reported.
In a statement, the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) said its members are angry the governor is forcing them to take off work three days a month, which will result in a 15 percent pay cut.
Under the state budget recently signed by Schwarzenegger, the furloughs will be in effect until at least June 2010.
The decision to take job actions, including a strike, was approved by about 74 percent of its 95,000 members, but a strike is not imminent,the SEIU said.
The SEIU said it agreed to one furlough day a month in a tentative contract signed by the governor's representatives in February, but the Legislature never ratified the contract.
"This is about our contract," said SEIU President Yvonne Walker. "We negotiated in good faith, we have offered cost-saving solutions, and we need our contract to be ratified."
The union represents white collar and clerical workers, teachers, librarians and nurses hired directly by the state, including clerks at the Department of Motor Vehicles, auditors at the state tax board, and healthcare professionals in public hospitals.
A spokesman for the governor called the union vote "disappointing."
"With so many Californians out of work, it is very disappointing that these employees have voted to walk away from their jobs," spokesman Aaron McClear told the Los Angeles Times.
"We hope state workers continue to show up to work at a time when Californians are in need of the valuable services they provide."
"There is no strike planned at this time," union spokesman Jim Zamora said. "What we will be doing is holding a number of meetings next week to decide what our next step is."
Union officials said a strike would be legal despite a provision in their existing contract that prohibits work stoppages. They said the governor lost the power to enforce the no-strike clause because the furloughs he ordered violate the contract.
The union's statement said a strike could be called if leaders believe it is "necessary" to get the new contract ratified. It's also possible the union will call for smaller actions, such as temporary walkouts.
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