Calif. appeals ruling on furloughs

Administration lawyers filed the appeal with the 1st District Court of Appeals, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Alameda County Superior Court Judge Steven A. Brick ruled Monday that furloughs would create undue hardship for state workers. The ruling came in a suit filed by union officials, in opposition to Schwarzenegger's plan to require about 150,000 state employees to take three unpaid days off per month until legislative leaders adopt a state budget.

Essentially, the furloughs, which would have begun Friday, would have amounted to a 14 percent reduction in pay, the newspaper said.

"Homes have been lost or at risk of being lost because of inability to keep current on mortgages," the judge wrote in his decision.

Previous furloughs in California have also met with legal challenges. The California Supreme Court is scheduled to consider the issue in September.

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