By Illinois News Network
SPRINGFIELD – Illinois’ comptroller has announced a new payroll system is coming because the current one can’t calculate for all the various changes that would have to take place if state employees are only to get the federal minimum wage in lieu of a balanced budget.
Comptroller Leslie Munger said an updated system will help in the future if there’s another financial crisis like is currently playing out in Illinois where it’s day six of the current fiscal year with no balanced budget in place. That means there’s no spending authority, even for payroll to state employees.
Munger said more than 200 old payroll systems would make it far too impractical to do several different kinds of calculations to pay the federal minimum wage to essential employees.
“It is difficult to make changes to them, they have to be manually overridden,” Munger said. “To go back later and try to catch those up would be a logistical nightmare if it is even possible.”
Munger said an updated system will help in the future if there’s another financial crisis.
“Next year at this time if we face a similar circumstance we will be in a position to identify essential employee and be able make some of these changes easily comply with federal law,” Munger said.
Attorney General Lisa Madigan filed for the courts to clarify which employees get paid and how much they receive.
The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees union filed a lawsuit demanding the court order full pay to employees as it did in a similar situation back in 2007. As state employees await their payroll fate, Illinois legislators will still be issued paychecks after a law they passed last year.
Gov. Bruce Rauner vetoed their pay raises and increases to per diem and travel allowance. State workers are paid by July 15.
