ALBANY (AP) -- Despite their strong objections, New York lawmakers are scheduled to vote for unprecedented furloughs for state workers to contend with a fiscal crisis.
Gov. David Paterson is resorting to one-day furloughs each week for about 100,000 state workers after unions refused his earlier requests for lag pay and suspending their 4-percent raises.
Paterson says he will stop the furloughs, scheduled to begin the week of May 17, if unions agree to other concessions.
Paterson wants $250 million in concessions from unions to close a $9 billion budget deficit.
The difficult times have helped make the state budget more than a month late.
Workers will lose one day of work and pay for each week the state operates on emergency spending bills.
The Legislature's vote is scheduled for Monday. The unions representing the workers have scheduled rallies to protest the furloughs outside state office buildings for noon today, including the state office buildings in Syracuse and Utica.
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