NEW ORLEANS — As New Orleans works to close the budget deficit, the city has implemented furloughs. A social media post circulating online is raising questions about the city’s furlough policy, claiming that some employees are being required to work unpaid furlough days. That allegation prompted WWL Louisiana to take a closer look at how the policy actually works.
According to sources familiar with the city’s furlough guidelines, classified employees who have civil service protections are not supposed to work on designated furlough days. Instead, their furlough time is structured to equal roughly one day per pay period, during which they are not scheduled to work nor are paid.
The policy differs for unclassified employees, who do not have civil service protections and typically serve in higher-level or at-will positions. Under the city’s furlough memo, these employees are expected to continue working their normal schedules but with a 10% reduction in pay, rather than taking unpaid days off…