Union: No more pay freezes for state employees

A key union leader for Montana state and university employees says he will not bargain another salary freeze with the governor — drawing a line in the sand amid what is expected to be a very tight budget process.

The gove rno r ' s o f f i c e responded by saying that tough economic times means everyone — including state employees — need to have reduced expectations. Budget Director David Ewer did not rule out the possibility of a pay freeze.

Eric Feaver, the forceful voice at the legislature and elsewhere for an influential union that represents about 3,000 state employees, told me...

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