California Supreme Court To Rule Monday On Worker Furloughs

SACRAMENTO (AP) -- The California Supreme Court will rule next week about whether the governor has authority to furlough state workers.

Government employee unions are challenging Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's furlough order. He first implemented furloughs for more than 200,000 state workers in February 2009.

Schwarzenegger said the move was intended to save money as California faced a severe budget crisis. The furloughs have translated to about a 14 percent pay cut.

The seven-member court heard arguments from state and union attorneys last month. The governor maintains he was acting within his rights to deal with a budget crisis, but labor attorneys say he violated collective-bargaining law.

It's not clear whether employees would be entitled to back pay if the court sides with them. The court says it will issue its ruling on Monday.

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