It's official, state workers: Among the budget priorities at the Capitol, you don't rate high enough for pay raises. Or even cost-of-living raises.
Maybe next year.
It likely doesn't come as a surprise if you've worked for the state for any length of time.
You've heard the talk before: "You're dedicated, hard-working public servants, and you provide valuable services to the residents of Missouri. You do a great job, and we appreciate your service. You deserve a pay raise, and we're going to work to get you one."
Maybe next year.
Toward the beginning of this year's legislative session, we urged lawmakers to spike Gov. Eric Greitens' recommendation not to include state employee pay raises in the budget.
After all, Missouri ranks dead last among states when it comes to paying their state workers. Even last year, when state workers did get a small cost-of-living raise, it didn't keep up with inflation.
But let's face it: To the governor and most lawmakers, getting you out of the pay cellar isn't a priority. After all, lawmakers represent different parts of the state, and most legislative districts don't have that many state workers. Out of sight, out of mind.
Your governor has looked at the problem and determined there's just too many of you. If we could get rid of some of that "big, bloated bureaucracy," as Greitens collectively described you, we could raise pay for the rest of you, he suggested. No word, so far, on which agencies are bloated or how the state will further reduce its workforce.
But don't fret. There's another plan you can look forward to - the pay study. Two years ago, lawmakers, knowing you are underpaid, commissioned a study to see whether you are underpaid. Last year, the study confirmed you are underpaid.
The study also revealed some other issues that apparently don't rise to the level of needing attention, such as the fact low pay for state workers has caused a high turnover rate, which costs the state more through increased overtime and training.
Sometimes studies serve as an inexpensive way to show concern. Implementing the recommendations is another thing.
Maybe next year.
There's always next year. Cubs fans said that long enough and it finally happened, right?
By next January, lawmakers will have had more than a year for the pay study results to sink in.
"Missouri's state employees are its No. 1 asset, and these employees have grown weary of decades of political-speak about improving their pay," Sen. Mike Kehoe said last year. "This study will provide a mechanism to move from talk to action."
We hope, next year, Kehoe and our local lawmakers will be able to spur their colleagues into action.