More than 21,000 state employees could get pay raises of up to 5 percent in the next year, despite Gov. Chris Gregoire’s proposal to cut $1.7 billion from public schools, health care and other programs to solve a budget shortfall.The $83 million worth of raises represents the “step” or longevity-pay increase that almost one-third of the state’s general-government workers are entitled to earn in yearly increments, typically over their first six years in a job.

The step pay is separate from cost-of-living raises, which state lawmakers this year agreed to suspend for two years for state workers, and college and public school employees

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