Judy Lin
SACRAMENTO, Calif. – A judge on Friday declined to force the state controller to comply with an order by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to pay state workers minimum wage while the state remains without a budget.
Sacramento County Superior Court Judge Patrick Marlette denied the administration’s request for a temporary restraining order that would have forced the controller to pay the federal minimum wageimmediately to about 200,000 state workers.
He ruled that it would cause too much harm to employees.
Deputy Controller Hallye Jordan said the decision means state workers will continue to receive their full wages in July and August.
“We were very pleased that the judge took into consideration our arguments and the impact it would have on hundreds of thousands of state employees who have worked for their checks and expect the full amount,” Jordan said after the ruling.
The judge did say he will allow the administration’s lawsuit to proceed so the courts can sort out whether the controller must pay minimum wage in the future. The next hearing will be July 26.
A spokeswoman for Schwarzenegger’s Department of PersonnelAdministration said the administration is confident it will ultimately prevail in the courts.
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