CA Gov Brown strips cell phones from state employees

[The Straight Story]

Gov. Jerry Brown issued his first executive order Tuesday, taking aim at a technology that wasn't around the last time he was the state's top official: cell phones.

The governor ordered state agency and department heads to collect half of the approximately 96,000 state-issued cell phones currently in public employees' hands, a move he said will save California at least $20 million a year. Each cell phone costs an average of $36 a month, he added.

"It is difficult for me to believe that 40 percent of all state employees must be equipped with tax-payer funded cell phones," Brown said in a written statement. "The current number of phones out there is astounding."

Brown said he would like to see the number of cell phones cut by 48,000 by June 1, but said it may take a bit longer because some of those devices may be under contract with carriers. He noted that even with the reduction, one-fifth of state employees will still have cell phones.


http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/01/11/BA661H7E1T.DTL

[Horse with no Name]

1. I agree

Take away the perks--leave the jobs alone!

[Cronus Protagonist]

3. That's not a perk, IMHO

An employer provided cell phone is a leash, not a perk.

[tblue37]

10. Well said! Workers do NOT need to be on call all the time! nt

[Cronus Protagonist]

12. And empl;oyers don't need a list of your personal phone numbers either,,

I would never use an employer provided phone for anything other than employer business, but nonetheless, people don't seem to realize how much they give up when they use it for personal calls.

[SoCalDem]

34. Yep... a day off is not a day off if your phone could ring at any moment

My sons would LOVE to ditch their work cell phones:)

[HowHasItComeToThis]

11. IT WILL SAVE 200 PER MONTH

[CreekDog]

13. I know and work with many CA state employees --the phone's not a perk

they usually have their own for personal purposes already.

it mainly means that they are checking their work email off hours or when on state required travel. it also means that many of them will answer their work cell phone while at home on vacation, with their kids or whatever. this after the furloughs, pay cuts and all the things that have made CA state employees (I am not one BTW) the voodoo doll of angry people, legislators and governors.

that they still want to do things off hours for people who consider their work device a "perk" is beyond all comprehension.

perk? more like a sentence.

[wickerwoman]

25. Yeah, safety issues as well.

State workers that have to visit private residences should have a cell phone on them in case there is trouble.

[MineralMan]

2. I'll wager that 90% of the calls made on those phones are

personal calls, too. Really, the only state workers who really need cell phones are field workers.

[RKP5637]

5. Yep, I bet that too! n/t

[CreekDog]

14. how many state employees do you know?

I know plenty with work cell phones and my direct knowledge contradicts your supposition.

[MineralMan]

29. I know enough of them to know that they make personal calls.

I've seen them do it. One state employee of my acquaintance even brags that he was able to drop his personal cell phone when he got his state phone.

On a flat rate plan, there's no additional cost to the state, but it's still a misuse of state property, in my opinion.

So, my direct knowledge contradicts your direct knowledge. There it is.

[madinmaryland]

19. Good point. Only field workers really need cell phones. If you sit at a desk

all day, why is there a need for a work-related cellphone?

[MineralMan]

28. That was my point. For workers who only very occasionally

work in the field, a cell phone that is available as a pool device can be available. Field workers need cell phones. It's their only means of communications. Others do not, and pool phones for an entire office could fill the need on the rare occasions when they're working outside of the office.

It's funny how defensive some people got to my suggestion that non-field employees don't need cell phones. I'm sure they all have personal cell phones anyhow. And the suggestion that state workers never use their state phones for personal calls just doesn't wash with me. I don't believe that for a second.

[madinmaryland]

32. That reminds me of the mid and late 80's when our department (private company)

had two pagers that we shared among a department of 10 people. When someone traveled into NYC, where most of our business was, they would get to "use" one of the pagers. If you were in the office, that what the telephone on your desk was for!

Do you remember those things too? I mention pager to my daughter, and she gives me a blank stare.

[MineralMan]

33. Pagers. Oh, yes, I remember pagers.

I'm older than dirt, you know... :rofl:

[Gaedel]

35. Yes, and back then

when you called an office, a secretary answered the phone and could give you information on just when the guy you needed to talk to would return your call.

Now you either get a triple canopy menu process that eventually gets you a voice mail box or you get directly to the voice mail box. Half the time, the voice mail box is full and won't accept your message.

I wouldn't mind the gummint workers having cell phones so long as the numbers are published in a phone directory for the government office.

[proud2BlibKansan]

27. And I would wager that they use their personal cells for personal calls

[RKP5637]

4. In the major corps. I've worked in I was responsible for my own cell phone, then

the corp. would reimburse me ONLY for company phone numbers called. I had to submit my phone bill each month. F up, lie or whatever on your expense report your reimbursement was stopped, and generally that could lead to a reduction in your performance, and that could lead to you being in the next layoff.

[upi402]

6. It takes a moonbeam

to shine the light of reason into a dark corner of conservative insanity.

Good idea Gov. Brown. I wish you had won the Presidency and we would never have had NAFTA, GATT, and the damn Telecommunications Act rammed down our throats.

[denverbill]

7. I would've thought a Republican/conservative waste-hater would've come up with that.

Good idea, IMO.

[Tatiana]

8. I don't have a problem with this.

When I used a cell phone for work, I used my own personal cell and I was provided a small ($15) stipend for my employer to have the privilege of contacting me when off the job or outside of the building.

[proud2BlibKansan]

9. My employer did the same thing a year or so ago

Now they call us on our personal cell phones, that they don't pay for.

Pretty much the same as a cut in pay, if you ask me.

[Maat]

18. +1

I've had the same experience.

[proud2BlibKansan]

22. Full disclosure - this doesn't affect me

But my hubby's employer also took back cell phones and pagers and since he is on the road most of the work day, we had to change our cell plan to cover the increase in minutes from his boss calling him.

And plenty of my co-workers also travel and are using personal cells for work.

[Maat]

30. Oh, that stinks.

A close friend, a social worker, is having to pay more out-of-pocket also. It's not fair, and making the employees question whether or not the job is worth continuing. Many can just retire.

[eissa]

20. Totally agree, plus extremely pissed at Brown right now

18% cut for the CSU system?! WTF?!?! Have we not suffered enough with pay cuts, furloughs, huge class sizes, tripling tuition, etc.? CA schools are hovering around the bottom and he decides to cut education AGAIN?

[proud2BlibKansan]

23. My CA teacher friends aren't too happy with him.

[somone]

15. Great idea!

[YvonneCa]

16. I think this is hilarious! Meg would never have thought of...

...it.(Bad for business.) :7

[ProgressiveProfessor]

17. Seems reasonable

[jayfish]

21. Oh shite! The wireless carriers are going to flip out.

I expect fierce lobbying to the point of a possible backpedal on this one.

[lpbk2713]

24. Productivity should go up.

While traffic accidents go down.


Good move, Gov.

[proud2BlibKansan]

26. Yes since none of those state employees have personal cell phones

:sarcasm:

[itsrobert]

31. Most people I worked with had their personal own cells and didn't want to have to carry two

It was quite annoying taking two phones every where you went.