How to Prepare for Work Furlough Without Going Broke

Work furloughs are meant to avoid layoffs, and losing a week's pay sounds a lot better than losing your job -- until the unpaid leave starts and you still have bills to pay.

In a strange twist on what is supposed to be a way to save companies and governments money, some are finding that furloughs are leaving more work for the remaining co-workers. A city in New Jersey is asking low-paid crossing guards to pick up the slack for its furloughed workers.

Furloughs are everywhere -- schools, private employers, and city and state governments, although the Nevada governor is asking for pay cuts because furloughs are resulting in unfinished work and poor customer service. A school district in Charlotte, N.C., doesn't allow workers making less than $32,000 a year to be furloughed.