ALBANY - Lawmakers were faced Monday with a dire decision - furlough 100,000 state workers or shut down the government.
Gov. Paterson, who is trying to close a $9.2 billion budget deficit, has included a provision for a one-day-a-week furlough in the latest emergency budget extender.
Legislative leaders concede they'll reluctantly approve the furoloughs - rather than shut state business down completely.
In radio interviews, Paterson said the public employees unions have "repeatedly ignored the fact that there's a recession."
Even union-funded commercials fail to acknowledge the state is grappling with a frightening fiscal crisis, he said.
It doesn't seem to matter to them that 48 of the 50 states are in deficit, that New York is teetering on the verge of insolvency, Paterson said on Buffalo's WBEN-AM.
They just want to frollick along and do commercials and have rallies as if there isn't a method or a means to an end that will get us out of this mess.
The unions are planning statewide rallies at noon Monday to put pressure on lawmakers.