On July 29, 1986, results of an ill-received survey administered by state commissioners were announced. The survey had asked individual state employees whether they would personally prefer a wage cut to a collective amount of layoffs, to which hundreds of workers answered that negotiations be settled through their unions instead. Though the majority of the 1,200 workers who answered agreed that they would support a reduction in hours and/or leave without pay, over half of those who responded also added that the state must converse with their union. So far, only one union, the Marine Engineers Beneficial Association, had agreed to a meeting with the state to discuss cost-saving measures.
In Juneau, budget issues were not too hard-hitting when it came to construction. Three important project — waterfront development, Juneau Recovery Unit renovation and downtown library construction — was to be funded with money saved by the City and Borough of Juneau from past reappropriated grants.
Meanwhile, U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, proposed a new idea to save Alaska’s financial situation: slow or completely stop drilling oil and save Alaska’s main source of revenue for the future. He argued that the tactic would benefit Alaska in the long term, as prices have stooped too low for the state to make livable earnings and the amount of product we own will only lessen as we continue to sell.
“This Day in Juneau History” is compiled by Empire intern Tasha Elizarde, who sums up the day’s events — 30 years ago — by perusing Empire archives. To learn more about the project, click here.
