Paterson Orders 2,000 State Jobs Cut by Mid-November

In the latest effort to reign in the state's massive budget deficit, Gov. David Paterson has ordered 2,000 state jobs to be cut through attrition by the end of the year.

In a memo sent to agency commissioners, Paterson says layoffs to the 200,000-person state work force could begin by mid-November.

One public employee's union has already filed a claim against the governor saying it has a binding agreement prohibiting layoffs for the duration of his administration.

Paterson said he would have to resort to layoffs because the unions refused to delay raises or take other action to help address the state's multibillion-dollar deficit. The governor, speaking on WOR on Thursday, said the unions left him no choice.

A statement posted on the Public Employees Federation website says they will take "whatever actions may be necessary" to ensure that the governor abides by his earlier agreement to not layoff public employees for the rest of his term.

The PEF writes: "It is unconscionable for the governor and his administration to call for potential layoffs while there are hundreds if not thousands of state employees who have been denied or haven’t even been offered the retirement incentive."