Bill removing civil service protection from state employees passes MS House #msleg

State workers may lose civil service protection

The House narrowly passed a bill Thursday that would remove most state employees from civil service protection for three years, allowing agency heads to more easily fire them or shift their positions to save money as the state budget crunch persists.
“We just got January numbers,” said House Appropriations Chairman John Read, R-Gautier, who authored House Bill 974 to remove most state agencies from State Personnel Board protection. “We are $18 million shy, below projected revenue. There could be more cuts coming … In a Pollyanna world, I could print money and we’d all be happy.”
He said agency directors need flexibility to deal with budget cuts past and forthcoming.

Clarion Ledger
2/2/17