Unemployment increased in Bay Area by government staff cut

On the one hand the increase in unemployment rate is pushing foreclosure crisis into deeper trouble, experts say, and pressurizing government to announce foreclosure mitigation programs and on the other the budget cuts in Bay Area counties cause the reduction of staff strength and increasing unemployment. This maze-like situation is brought to light by the database compiled by the Bay Area News Group.

For the second year on succession, Bay Area News Group has released the details in their database, dealing with government employee’s salaries and related matters. According to it, 80 percent of government budgets are spent on salary and related personnel costs like health benefits, contribution to pension etc.

California Association of Counties executive director, Paul Mcintosh explains this means when government authorities, such as counties reduce employees, it directly affects the public by reduced services. The News Group data shows that reduction of staff was resorted to by county governments of Alameda, Contra Costa, San Mateo, Santa Clara, San Joaquin, Napa and Solano in 2009. Mcintosh says counties were laying off employees, while people were lining up at 6 a.m. to apply for food stamps.

He says California government’s proposed cutting of funds towards state welfare-to-work program will shrink the county budgets further. A combined project deficit of $2.25 billion is experienced by the 15 largest counties in the State, including Contra Costa, Alameda, San Mateo and Santa Clara counties.

News Group data shows that the budget cut has culminated in cutting workers strength. Oakland, the East Bay’s largest city, saw a reduction of 374 workers in 2009 from what it was having in 2008 and thereby the reduction in payroll amounted to $36.7 million.

The situation is well described by Gilbert Seldon, the fire chief of the Alameda County fire department –“most of public service agencies have cut deeply, but the public still expects to receive basic services”. Fire-fighters work 56-hour weeks at regular pay under state law and don’t get overtime until the 57^th hour.

What about the tax-payers’  money spent on bail-out programs caused by these government-induced unemployment?

Posted by Amitesh Kumar on May 28 2010. Filed under Economy, Foreclosures, Housing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry