What Is The “Pay Act”

If you’re unsure what the Pay Act is exactly, here’s a quick primer:

Every two years, legislation called the Pay Act is introduced to determine what level of funding the collective bargaining agreements between VSEA and the State receive. This bill begins its journey in the House Government Operations Committee. The Act is one of VSEA’s top legislative priorities each biennium. While the State is legally obligated to honor any contracts negotiated with the Union, the legislature has been known to underfund these agreements and ask departments and agencies to use vacancy savings to make up the difference – this is commonly referred to as “eating the Pay Act.” In a utopian world, departments and agencies could absorb these costs by leaving positions unfilled throughout state government, but the recession(s), pandemic, etc., means these savings are in short supply.

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