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Association of Civil Service Employees to hold emergency meeting today
The signing of the state budget not only finalized an 8-percent cut in the SIUC budget, but also assured cuts in the University staff as well. The Association of Civil Service Employees hopes to find a way to evade the 29 pending layoffs and will have an emergency meeting today to discuss possible alternatives to these layoffs.
"The threat of layoffs is very real," said Ruth Pommier, president of the Association of Civil Service Employees. "It's no longer a threat, in fact. It's a pending reality.
"Last Wednesday and Thursday, when I met with [labor representatives], I requested a list of the positions that were earlier projected to receive release notices, and we've evoked the right to bargain."
The emergency meeting, which will take place from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the Faner Museum Auditorium, is open to all civil service employees concerned about the pending layoffs.
Pommier stressed that only some of the 29 positions on the list are in danger of actually being cut. According to her, many employees have enough clout to avoid dismissal, while others who are approaching their time for retirement may want to look at their options in that area. She emphasized that the association was in no way, however, urging any members to retire.
Shortly after the meeting of civil service workers, Pommier will meet with Director of Labor and Employee Relations Robert York to further discuss alternatives to the layoffs.
She said she plans to emphasize that, collectively, the elimination of in-danger civil service positions across campus would only save the University $500,000. This amount, in Pommier's opinion is "insignificant" in terms of the $19 million cut SIU must tackle during the 2004 fiscal year.
"While we're concerned about the loss of even one of our employees, we're also very concerned about the students," Pommier said. "The 30-day notice these [laid-off] employees will receive will kick in right when the semester begins, and there is no way this will not disturb students during the first week of the semester. Training new employees is very hard.
"Tension is very thick on campus, and having this meeting will relieve some of the uncertainty. Knowing what's going to happen also gives us the opportunity to make plans."
