UConn Advance - March 2, 2009 - Managers face wage freeze, furloughs

University President Michael J. Hogan today informed UConn managers that their compensation in Fiscal Year 2010 will be reduced to offset anticipated reductions in state support.

Hogan notified managers that they will lose their annual increases, take furlough days, or some combination of the two as part of his program to achieve major cost savings in light of the challenging national and state financial crisis.

The fiscal year begins July 1.

The announcement affects managers at Storrs and the regional campuses, and the Schools of Law and Social Work.

“As the state’s financial situation continues to decline, it is becoming increasingly clear that we must take extraordinary steps to address the growing budget deficit that is forecasted for the next fiscal year,” said Hogan in an e-mail to the 103 administrative managers who are not unionized.

“Budget realities require that we sacrifice even more, and I’m confident you share my belief that sacrifice should begin with the University’s administrative managers.”

Hogan has already asked the 103 administrative managers to take by March 1 a “day on at UConn” – a day at work without pay, and has done so himself.

He said he appreciates the cooperation he has received from managers who supported this initiative.

Regarding the wage freeze Hogan said, “The dollar savings resulting from this action may seem modest in comparison to the total reduction the University may be required to implement. Yet, every dollar of savings we can generate is important. Your sacrifice will be real, and I know it will be appreciated by our students, faculty, and staff.”

Hogan said he wanted to allow managers to plan for the cuts and that he appreciated the leadership managers have offered.

“Let me note how difficult I know this news is for you. Many of you have risen to the challenges over the past year with innovative solutions to address them. Indeed, the quality of our already-excellent programs has continued to rise, our students continue to excel, and UConn’s reputation continues to soar. You have played a key role in producing these remarkable outcomes and deserve all forms of recognition,” he said. “Yet these are extraordinary times calling for extraordinary measures.”

To date, UConn has ordered each of its departments to achieve 3 percent savings this year, as a result of a more than $12 million rescission in its state support. Further cuts in the next fiscal year, which begins July 1, are anticipated.

To help identify possible spending reductions and revenue enhancements, Hogan also appointed a task force to study the situation.

The Costs, Operations, & Revenue Efficiencies (CORE) Task Force, comprised of faculty, staff, and administrators and co-chaired by Richard Gray, vice president and chief financial officer; Barry Feldman, vice president and chief operating officer; and Peter Nicholls, provost and executive vice president for academic affairs, recently issued its initial report.

The report identified $5 million to $7 million in cost savings and revenue enhancements when fully implemented during the upcoming fiscal year (FY10). These will be achieved through measures such as energy conservation, reorganization of staffing, expanded summer session offerings, and streamlined work processes.

Hogan noted that he would immediately begin implementing the recommendations of the report to achieve the estimated savings and revenue enhancements by the end of FY10.

“We’re not stopping here,” Hogan said, “The CORE Task Force will continue working. I’m very grateful to them and to the community for suggesting ideas to them. Through this collaborative effort, we’ve achieved very impressive results in just 12 weeks.”

The next report of the CORE Task Force will be submitted in June 2009.