SavvySugar

Schwarzenegger Terminates Full Salaries of State Employees

SavvySugar — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 04:02:27 -0700

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is a man of his word this week. His threat to significantly cut the salaries of 200,000 state employees if lawmakers failed to produce a budget turned into reality when he signed an executive order reducing their pay to $6.55 an hour. The Governor's order also eliminates more than 20,000 state jobs, saying the state can't pay its bills without a budget.

Today, I am exercising my executive authority to avoid a full-blown crisis and keep our state moving forward. This is not an action I take lightly, but we do not have a budget, and as governor, I have a responsibility to make sure our state has enough money to pay its bills.

Needless to say, state employees facing enormous pay cuts are not happy about the situation. Karen Bass, the speaker of the State Assembly, shows her solidarity with the workforce: "It is an unwise and unfortunate move to cause economic strife to public servants and their families who are working hard and playing by the rules."

Source

Schwarzenegger's Wage Threat: A State Employee's Reaction

SavvySugar — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 04:00:51 -0700

As California Democrats and Republicans struggle to find a satisfactory compromise and seal the deal on a new and overdue state budget, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's frustration has risen to the point of making threats. He's considering an executive order that would reduce 200,000 state employees' salaries to the $6.55 per hour federal minimum wage, which CitizenSugar points out is $1.45 less than the state's minimum wage.

A good friend of mine happens to be a hard-working California state employee, so I asked him for his thoughts on the governor's threat and how it would affect him should the order go through this week.

SavvySugar: How would something like this affect the public sector?

State Employee: I think it is a fair assumption that state employees do not jump into the public sector expecting some great financial windfall as a result. No, most people are doing it for a sense of security. Every month you are going to get your paycheck and you are going to get it on the first or the 30th and that's it. Likewise, you are going to have not just financial security, but job security. In general terms a concept such as the one which Arnold is proposing would overthrow one big benefit of being a public sector employee.

See his thoughts on the concept of Arnold's threat and how he'd personally be affected when you read more.

SS: What's your opinion on the concept in general?

SE: The fact of the matter is these are hard financial times for many people and by cutting people's salaries, in some cases up to 90 percent, you are putting their livelihood in dire straits and for what purpose? Stymieing the ability for 200,000 state employees to subsist on their own financially seems like a very backward way to help quell the budget crisis.

SS: How would you be affected? Does the fact that your salary would be paid retroactively make it no big deal?

SE: For me personally, I have enough savings that I could stand a few months without making my regular hourly pay, but it would be tight. I actually figured out what my pretax paycheck would be under the governor's proposal of lowering the salary to $6.55 an hour, and it comes out to $1135 a month. My paycheck after taxes would pay rent and that's it. No food, no water bill, no electric bill, nothing, just rent.

Source

What Do You Know About the Minimum Wage?

SavvySugar — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 11:02:09 -0700

Later this month the federal government and several states will increase their minimum wages. Even after the raise, 24 states and the District of Columbia will have minimum wages higher than the new federal wage of $6.55. What do you know about the minimum wage as it stands today? Take the quiz to find out!

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Take the quiz

Social Security Benefits in 2041 Below Minimum Wage Income

SavvySugar — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 12:33:49 -0700

If you haven't already been convinced that committing to retirement savings isn't really up for argument, consider these statements from the Social Security Administration. The average monthly benefit in June 2008 was $1,084.47, but in 2041 Social Security will only be able to pay 78 percent of scheduled benefits. The Motley Fool has calculated the inflation-adjusted equivalent to be $845.89 per month.

It hurts to see the Social Security payments deducted from each paycheck and know that we won't be receiving much back, but at least we have some warning. There's still plenty of time to get going on saving for retirement so that you can live comfortably in your golden years.

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Is It Acceptable For Cafe Owners to Take Tips From Servers?

SavvySugar — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 07:56:53 -0700

The owners of a Philadelphia cafe think it's OK to confiscate tips meant for servers, and explained their actions as being for the good of the community. They said they were collecting tips in order to help pay for restaurant renovations that would benefit everyone, including customers and employees. The cafe owners added to their defense that they pay their servers above minimum wage to start, and the server who outed the tip pirates said that wage is $7 per hour.

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Should Paid Sick Time Be an Employment Standard?

SavvySugar — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 11:00:29 -0700

Many of you admit that you go to work sick because you're too busy to miss work, but for 46 million US workers it's not the workload that's keeping them from taking time off, it's that they don't have the benefit of paid sick leave. Advocates of proposed state bills mandating paid sick leave are hoping legislation would expand existing benefits and add new ones.

Come November, voters in 12 states, including California, Connecticut, Minnesota and West Virginia, will have the chance to share their feelings about proposed state laws that would enforce businesses to offer paid sick leave. According to the US Department of Labor, about 80 percent of management-level workers have paid sick time compared to 39 percent of service workers.

Washington DC and San Francisco already have laws requiring paid sick time off, which helps ensure workers can still pay their bills even if they come down with a flu that leaves them bedridden. Workers' advocates believe paid sick time should be an employment standard like the federal minimum wage. Do you agree?

Source

News Flash: 99 Cent Stores to Abandon 99 Cent Philosophy?

SavvySugar — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 04:00:07 -0700

A higher minimum wage and increased commodity prices have the 99 Cents Only Stores chain considering bumping some prices above 99 cents. The company's CEO hopes customers will focus on prices as great values and not whether an item is 99 cents. - The Los Angeles Times
Here come the advertisements: Airlines are pursuing more aggressive in-flight marketing deals to combat fuel costs. Advertisers are keen to the idea as passengers offer a very captive audience. Watch out for ads on your tray tables, air-sickness bags, and in-flight entertainment systems. - CNN Money
A look at credit card debt worldwide: Thirty years ago, Turkey had fewer than 10,000 cards; today it has more than 38 million. - The New York Times

Do You Know What Is Normal Retirement Age?

SavvySugar — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 12:30:22 -0700

It may seem like a faraway reality unless you plan on retiring young, but retirement issues affect us all today because of the Social Security system in the US. The Social Security Administration has admitted that young workers won't be able to count on our less-than-minimum-wage benefits through retirement, and there's some discussion about whether or not it makes sense to raise the retirement age.

Do you know how old you must be in order to receive full Social Security benefits during retirement?

Source

Take the quiz

The Presidential Hopefuls and Your Pocketbook

SavvySugar — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 12:28:50 -0800

The New York Post put together this awesome chart that breaks down where the presidential hopefuls stand on six key issues - taxes, health care, trade, minimum wage, mortgage fraud, and the environment. Use it as a reference to make sense of what they've been debating about and everything you'll be hearing in the coming months - who doesn't love cheat sheets that make life easier?!