DC City Workers Get Furlough Pay Back

(Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO)Nearly 22,000 DC government employees who were required to take furlough days in 2011 are getting their pay back. Earlier this year, DC Mayor Vincent C. Gray proposed repaying employees after 2011 ended with a significant budget surplus instead of the projected budget gap. The D.C. Council passed legislation in June authorizing the repayments, which began showing up in city worker paychecks this week. “We asked our employees to sacrifice an amount of income that was significant for many of them in order to help close what was then projected to be a budget gap,” Mayor Gray said. “Instead, efficient management of government and unanticipated tax revenues gave us a surplus – and it’s only right that we pay back our hard-working employees. I am pleased that, with the Council’s support, we are able to do so.” “The welfare of a city is reflected in the welfare of its workers,” said Geo T. Johnson, Executive Director of AFSCME District Council 20, which represents some of the workers. “We have seen this recently, when the Mayor of this great city returned the  furlough days to city workers, who helped carry the burden when fiscal times were hard.” - photo: Mayor Gray on June 20, 2012 signs the supplemental budget authorizing repayment of furlough days, as Metro Council President Jos Williams (at right) looks on; photo by Lateef Mangum