Newsom Vetoes Bipartisan Bill to Raise Fire Firefighter Salaries After Wildfires
California Governor Gavin Newsom has vetoed a bill that would have raised California firefighters’ salaries. Newsom said in a letter explaining the veto decision that it would “create significant cost pressures for the state” and “circumvent the collective bargaining process.”…
“While I appreciate the author’s intent, this bill would create significant cost pressures for the state and circumvent the collective bargaining process. State employee salaries, along with other components of compensation such as health and pension benefits, should be determined through collective bargaining.”
Let’s translate that word salad from politician-speak, shall we? California Governor Gavin Newsom just vetoed a desperately needed pay raise for the state’s Cal Fire firefighters. After a ferocious fire season that scorched nearly 40,000 acres near Los Angeles, the heroes who battled those blazes were told the state is simply too poor to pay them. The bipartisan bill, Assembly Bill 1309, would have finally addressed the absurd pay gap that sees Cal Fire heroes scraping by on less than $53,000, while their counterparts in Los Angeles start at over $85,000.
But Newsom claims the Golden State is facing “significant cost pressures.” One has to wonder: if California is too broke to pay the men and women who keep it from turning to ash, where on earth is all the money going?
“While I appreciate the author’s intent, this bill would create significant cost pressures for the state and circumvent the collective bargaining process. State employee salaries, along with other components of compensation such as health and pension benefits, should be determined through collective bargaining.”
Let’s translate that word salad from politician-speak, shall we? California Governor Gavin Newsom just vetoed a desperately needed pay raise for the state’s Cal Fire firefighters. After a ferocious fire season that scorched nearly 40,000 acres near Los Angeles, the heroes who battled those blazes were told the state is simply too poor to pay them. The bipartisan bill, Assembly Bill 1309, would have finally addressed the absurd pay gap that sees Cal Fire heroes scraping by on less than $53,000, while their counterparts in Los Angeles start at over $85,000.
But Newsom claims the Golden State is facing “significant cost pressures.” One has to wonder: if California is too broke to pay the men and women who keep it from turning to ash, where on earth is all the money going?
70-79, M
