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210 social service employees in Orange County, California were informed yesterday that their jobs would be terminated as of January 19th, due to a recession-related decrease in tax revenue. The county board anticipates a $20 million dollar drop in state funding this year. Workers laid off include child abuse workers, and welfare eligibility technicians. The layoffs have been strongly opposed by the employee unions, who claim that the state did not look hard enough for alternatives, or tap into other resources to keep the social workers working. AFSCME president Herman Martinez says "it's sad because in my opinion, the county has made a knee-jerk reaction." The unions have furthermore criticized plans to remodel the supervisors' offices. Employees protested last month under the slogan, "chop at the top." County managers are set to vote today, concerning their 2% pay raise, which has also been criticized by the unions. Voting to defer the raises could save the county over $1 million. Employees given pink slips were counselled about medical insurance and encouraged to re-apply once the economy improved.