Cuts are coming.
But the general feeling among USM’s professional staff is that ‘we’re grown-ups, we can take it.’ Looking toward July 1, on which date many of them might be losing their jobs in USM’s effort to cut nearly $7 million from next year’s budget, they’re wishing only to be given time to prepare for the worst, rather than be left in the dark.
With another round of job cuts looming over the University of Southern Maine, USM is taking steps to soften the blow for employees, but it seems that what many of them want is communication.
“People can be more forgiving if they trust that their supervisors aren’t keeping secrets from them,” said one professional staff member, who did not want to be identified for fear of even further jeopardizing her job. “Not knowing what the next step is going to be for survival is the hardest part.”
USM’s professional staff work in offices across campus. They are salaried employees, whose jobs titles range from administrative assistant to accountant. They earn more than most classified staff, who work for hourly wages, but unlike faculty, they can’t earn tenure – which means that, looking at budget cuts in the multi-millions, they anticipate taking the brunt of the cuts.
Interim President Joe Wood has announced the possibility of laying off as many as 30 people by July 1. But according to Dan Rabata, the human resources director of employee benefits, the university is negotiation something new for this round of layoffs.
USM has negotiated a contract with the human resource consulting firm, Drake Inglesi Milardo, Inc. to offer services to some employees who are facing job loss. Employees with at least five years of continuous regular employment at USM and who are working at least half-time are eligible to meet with the outside firm for two months to work on everything from resume building and job searches to in-depth counseling and testing for new career opportunities.
The normal fee for these services provided by Drake Inglesi Milardo, Inc. is $2500, but the lower rate of $1500 was obtained through negotiation and the firm’s desire to help the university at this difficult period.
“Judy Ryan (vice president for HR and planning) and I were looking for added ways to help employees deal with the stress and difficulties of layoff. We decided on this approach, got the necessary approvals and are moving ahead with it,” Rabata said.
Michelle Drucker, USM’s HR director of leadership and organization development, works with USM’s employee assistance program. Through this program, Drucker helped to organize a seminar for all USM supervisors, managers and directors on issues that arise during downsizing.
“It’s the uncertainty of the situation that’s often the hardest, we’re trying to help with that,” Drucker said. The seminar offered information on how to handle reactions from laid-off employees as well as remaining employees, how to conduct lay-off meetings and how to support remaining employees and minimize adverse effects.
One employee who attended the seminar said that the information was very valuable, “but we don’t know where the cuts are going to come from, so the whole time I was there I was wondering if I was even going to have to use this training, and just hoping that I wouldn’t.”
Beth Higgins, director of advising services at USM, says morale in her department doing well.
“Naturally, my staff reads the paper, and are somewhat concerned about their jobs and their students,” Higgins said. “It’s my responsibility to touch base with them and work to identify what we can do. Right now, everyone just has the intention of success with the students in mind.”
Few professional staff were willing to be identified by the press – but all felt similarly that morale is lower than people in Higgin’s position seem to suggest. Employees are nervous, they say, adding that the lack of information is a breeding ground for mistrust and rumors. All were afraid of pushing the envelope one centimeter too far by talking to us, and being put on “the list.”
“Everyone is feeling similar emotions,” one staff member said. “Anxiety, frustration from lack of information and wondering when the other shoe is going to drop.”
Another professional staff, who is in a supervisory position, learned early on that her administrative assistant’s position might be cut.
“I told her as soon as I knew that her position was being examined so that she would have time to prepare,” she said.
Ultimately, the assistant’s position was cut in an effort to save the program, but both supervisor and employee had felt prepared.
“We were ready,” she said. “We grieved, but she didn’t collapse with the news. It just seems like a more humane way to deal with it, and there’s no reason why this can’t be done on a more consistent basis.”