PROVIDENCE — Governor Carcieri has warned thousands of workers in the largest state workers union that he plans to retroactively deduct higher health-care contributions from their paychecks to try to balance the budget.

As part of his much-contested executive order, Carcieri said he is also considering more severe alternatives that his administration suggests may include layoffs and shutdown days. His actions will depend on the result of a Superior Court review of the case.

“No matter the outcome, my staff has contingency plans in place that could be executed quickly to achieve the needed budget savings,” the governor said in a statement issued yesterday afternoon. “As I have previously said, implementing the co-shares and plan design changes, as agreed to by more than two-thirds of state employee unions and by Council 94 representatives, is far less severe than it would be to commence layoffs and shutdown days.”

Council 94 of the American Federation of State, County & Municipal Employees –– an umbrella organization that collectively makes up the largest state workers union –– yesterday called Carcieri’s comments “threats” that undermine the court process and ignore the collective-bargaining rights of the union’s 4,000 members.

Last month, the union’s rank and file overwhelmingly rejected a contract proposal that its own leaders helped draft, prompting Carcieri to impose an executive order requiring Council 94 and other unions that defeated the deal to pay the same increased share of their health-insurance premiums as those who had agreed to the settlement.

The order was set to go into effect with today’s paycheck, but union lawyers took the administration to court, trying to block Carcieri’s plan. At Judge Patricia A. Hurst’s request, the governor agreed to hold off implementing the changes while she reviews the case.

“I don’t really understand why he’s now doing this, coming out with a press release when we were just in court the other day,” Council 94 Executive Director Dennis R. Grilli said yesterday. “I think we should be respectful: let the judge review the case and let the process play out.”

Grilli said Hurst asked the parties not to discuss the particulars of the case in any detail before a decision is made. He thus declined to comment further.

A day earlier, Carcieri’s chief legal council, Kernan F. King, said much the same.

“The judge has asked us not to comment extensively on this,” King told reporters outside Superior Court in Providence.

In the governor’s one-page statement, Carcieri said the retroactive increases in health-care contributions are necessary to help the state meet its targeted budget savings.

Carcieri was counting on the proposed increase in health-insurance contributions to help close a $425-million deficit. The new rates, together with a one-year delay in pay raises, were to have saved the state a total of $10 million this year.

Without a contract, those savings were jeopardized.

Carcieri spokeswoman Amy Kempe said the administration has not determined whether it plans to retroactively deduct the increases in a single pay period or spread out over several weeks or months. Those details have not yet been worked out, she said.

Judge Hurst is expected to issue a ruling in the case within two weeks. The matter is also before the state Labor Relations Board, which will hold a hearing to weigh the complaint against the governor.

cneedham@projo.com