PROVIDENCE — The state’s largest employees’ union returned to court yesterday asking a Superior Court judge to stop Governor Carcieri from imposing health-care increases by executive order on thousands of state employees while the case winds its way through appeals and the state Labor Relations Board.

Following a closed, 90-minute meeting, Judge Patricia A. Hurst delayed her decision until at least Monday, when she’ll again meet with lawyers for the governor and the union.

The Carcieri administration, meanwhile, says it will not start deducting increased health co-shares from employee paychecks issued today. It instead plans to begin taking those deductions two weeks from now, on Sept. 5.

Yesterday’s conference came a day after Hurst told Council 94, of the American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees, that it was up to the state Labor Relations Board –– not the courts –– to decide whether Carcieri can force the workers in the executive branch to pay higher health-care costs.

In that same decision, Hurst barred Carcieri from imposing similar increases on state workers in other branches of government, namely the courts and the General Assembly.

With his legal team in court yesterday, the governor took to the airwaves, speaking on at least three talk-radio shows, at times criticizing Hurst, who in her ruling accused him of trying to deflect blame for the state’s fiscal troubles, and thinking “he is above the law.”

Her disapproval didn’t end there:

“By allowing a deficit-burdened budget to become law while relying upon future revenues that he and the Legislature had dubious power to secure, the Governor embarked upon a perilous mission, fraught with constitutional and other legal difficulties that, unfortunately, may well cost the state more in time and litigation than it stood to gain,” she wrote.

Appearing on WPRO’s The Buddy Cianci Show, the governor called Hurst’s statement “completely irresponsible,” adding, “she doesn’t understand what budgeting is about.”

“…I took greater offense frankly, I thought it was completely irresponsible of her to say that somehow I feel I’m above the law,” he said.

Both sides were more restrained following the meeting with Hurst. Kernan F. King, Carcieri’s chief legal counsel, described the conference as “a wonderful intellectual discussion,” but would not elaborate.

Union executives declined to comment on the meeting.

Council 94 officials have admonished the governor for not negotiating with them after their membership overwhelmingly rejected a new contract brokered in part by its own leaders.

But the Carcieri team has refused to return to the bargaining table, arguing that it already invested hundreds of hours in negotiations and can’t be blamed for the deal’s failure. The state notified the union that the terms of the old deal were to have expired June 30, which in the state’s estimation left the membership with no contractual protections and allowed the executive order.

The governor’s lawyers say he needs the increased health-care contributions –– which would be based on a percent of premiums instead of a percentage of workers’ salaries –– to save the state $10 million and help avert a deficit.

Wednesday’s ruling didn’t address the allegations pending before the Labor Relations Board that Carcieri violated state labor law by refusing to negotiate. That issue is scheduled for a hearing Sept. 10.

And while the Hurst decision cites the separation-of-powers provision in the state Constitution as the reason why Carcieri cannot impose health-care increases on workers in other branches of government, many employees in the state’s courts already began paying the new premium-based amounts earlier this month, according to a spokesman. Non-union employees, including the judges and magistrates, will be seeing the retroactive change in today’s paychecks.

Legislative employees have thus far escaped the higher health insurance co-shares, with a leadership committee likely to meet after Labor Day to decide what to do. The attorney general’s office has also held off, pending a resolution between the state and the union.

A Carcieri spokeswoman has been unable to say for certain how many union and non-union state workers across state government are already paying raised health-care contributions.

cneedham@projo.com