December 23, 2004 11:31 AM

What's on state contractors' holiday wish lists? Benefits.
Posted by at 11:31 AM

In order to keep costs and head count down, among other reasons, many employers rely on contractors. While Governor Romney wants private companies to start extending healthcare benefits to all employees, the state itself doesn't cover all of its workers.

Governor Mitt Romney wants businesses that refuse to provide health insurance to their workers to pay a higher minimum wage or post decals in their windows telling customers they do not offer coverage. But in suggesting ways to pressure employers into being good public citizens, the governor has neglected to mention one prominent offender: his own administration.

The executive agencies under Romney's purview do not provide healthcare coverage to roughly 2,300 contract workers, treating all of them as if they were private consultants, even though some work full time in jobs that are identical to those of full-fledged state employees. They include computer programmers, secretaries, and doctors.