Strategic Leadership Works to End PLP Early

Post

The Personal Leave Program (PLP) negotiated with the State last summer may come to an end one year early, on July 1 of this year. If that happens, our members will see the 9.23% pay cut they endured fully restored ahead of schedule.

Our side letter with the State says, in part, “If the Governor and Legislature do not draw funds from the rainy-day fund to cover revenue shortfalls, the PLP 2020 in fiscal year 2021-22 will be discontinued.”

President Biden’s new stimulus agreement will send $26 billion into the state’s coffers. At the same time, California’s budget is projecting a $10 billion surplus this year.

Just a year ago, early in the pandemic, California faced a $54 billion budget shortfall and the governor called for a 10% pay cut in the state workforce. Local 1000’s bargaining team negotiated a side letter agreement that created the PLP program and deferred some of our general salary increases.

At the same time, our team was able to preserve a number of recently-won contract benefits, including our $260 monthly health care stipend, all of the special salary adjustments, and pay differentials.

We’ll know more about the end of PLP and about pay raises, after the upcoming “May Revise,” which is an updated projection of revenues and costs for the upcoming 2021-22 fiscal year.