SEIU Workers Decry Budget Decisions

State employees rallied in towns and cities across the Commonwealth today to protest the budget impasse and their current lack of compensation. Since there's no new budget in place, state workers won't get paychecks after this Friday. But Department of Public Welfare Chief Shop Steward Bruce Travers says this was about more than not getting paid. “This is a time when, with the economy the way it is, we have more work than we have ever seen, and … we are understaffed,” says Travers. “At the same time, the Pennsylvania state legislature is more overstaffed per capita than any other state in the union.” He says the Service Employees International Union proposed cuts to Governor Ed Rendell that added up to over one billion dollars, but they were ignored. Travers says he’s not sure what the union’s next move will be, but with the governor stating he would wait until Labor Day for a budget solution, anything is on the table.