Walz administration will give state workers a raise despite legislative impasse

ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - Gov. Tim Walz's administration will implement state worker union contracts with a 2.5 percent pay raise in July, even though the Legislature failed to agree on a ratification bill. 
 
The DFL House ratified the contracts as-is, but the GOP-controlled Senate voted to strip out the raises, citing a projected $2.4 billion budget deficit.
 
"Although the Senate chose a path that is not outlined in law, the legal effect of the Legislature’s action is to ratify the agreements that we negotiated in good faith and the compensation plans," said Myron Frans, Walz's budget commissioner.
 
The move impacts nearly 50,000 state workers. In addition to not getting July's scheduled raise, they had faced seeing 2019's raise wiped out because of the legislative impasse.

Wednesday morning, Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka said the Walz administration "would look very tone deaf" if it decided to pay the raises despite the projected budget deficit.