Hundreds of state workers in California held a rally on the west steps of the Capitol Thursday, to protest Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's plan to temporarily slash their pay to the federal minimum wage of $6.55 an hour because of the impasse the state’s budget faces.

The workers waved pennants and placards and listened to speeches by union leaders and Democratic legislators.

“It appears to me that the governor did not know who he was messing with,” said Yvonne Walker, president of Service Employees International Union Local 1000, as quoted by The Mercury News. “We're not political pawns.”

Schwarzenegger is expected to sign the order early next week, affecting 200,000 state workers, but State Controller John Chiang, who is responsible for disbursing state workers' paychecks, said Thursday that he was against the governor’s plan and intended to set up a political standoff and even a legal fight, The San Francisco Chronicle informs.

“The authority to issue people's paychecks is mine. I have both constitutional and statutory authority,” said Chiang according to the Chronicle. “Frankly, (the governor) is just trying to make me do something that's improper and illegal.”

But the Republican administration supports the governor’s plan and says he has the legal right to invoke the plan. The workers will only be temporarily paid the minimum wage. After a new budget is passed, their salaries will be restored along with back wages.