|
|
| Sheriff use furloughs to meet budget |
| By |
| Published: 03/16/2009 |
|
By Julie Manganis - Gloucester Times SALEM, MA — The county's two top public safety officials are scrambling to avoid layoffs in the face of state budget cuts. At the district attorney's office, employees are being asked to take unpaid days off, ranging from one to four days. Middleton Jail and other Sheriff's Department facilities are implementing a series of measures, including unpaid days for senior staff, a reduced workweek for some employees and a change in the workweek for correctional officers that is aimed at reducing overtime costs. "I'm right down to the bare bones," said District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett. Blodgett and other district attorneys around the state have taken a 2 1/2 percent budget cut. With more than 90 percent of Blodgett's budget consisting of salaries and benefits, there was little elsewhere to cut. Blodgett's main goal was to avoid having to cut an already strained staff. "I'm doing everything I can to avoid layoffs," said Blodgett, who said they are a last resort. The unpaid "furloughs" began in January and will continue through the end of the fiscal year in June. Blodgett took four unpaid days. Anyone making more than $60,000 in his office was asked to take three days; employees making between $40,000 and $60,000 are taking two days; and anyone making less than $40,000 will have one unpaid day. Not one person, he said, has turned down the request. "I was very proud of them," Blodgett said. "Everyone to a person agreed to do this." Most of his prosecutors are already working well over 40 hours a week, he said. "There isn't a Saturday I go in that there isn't someone working," Blodgett said. But with talk of another 8.5 percent cut to the district attorney's budget in next year's state budget, Blodgett is concerned, especially with the likelihood that the decline in the economy could spur an increase in crimes ranging from burglaries and car breaks to more domestic abuse. 4-and-2 workweek axed At Middleton Jail, Sheriff Frank Cousins has implemented a series of changes aimed at making up for a $1.25 million midyear budget cut. "To incur a cut of that magnitude in the middle of the fiscal year was difficult," said spokesman Paul Fleming, who said the annual budget for the department is approximately $50 million. "Our top mission was to ensure that he would not have to lay anybody off," Fleming said. "What's happening here is an exercise in shared sacrifice." The top staff, including superintendents, and the union representing lieutenants and captains agreed to six furlough days. The largest group of employees, the correctional officers, are now working a schedule of five days followed by two days off; they had previously worked four days in a row followed by two days off. Fleming said the change in the work schedule was allowed by the current contract. That will increase the total number of shifts each officer works and decrease the number of shifts for which someone has to be brought in on overtime. That will save an estimated $500,000, Fleming said. Clerical and clinical staff saw their hours cut from 40 to 32 per week. Cousins also cut the number of hours worked by contracted "vendors," who are people working on a per-diem basis in various jobs, including some retired police officers who work on internal affairs investigations, Fleming said. He is also halting the use of reserve officers for the rest of the fiscal year. The sheriff is also not filling four positions that will be empty as a result of retirements, Fleming said. Asked whether there's a concern about public safety in the face of the cuts, Fleming said he doesn't see one yet. "We have to work harder with less resources," Fleming said. "That's how (the sheriff) is looking at it at this time." Read more. If link has expired, check the website of the article's original news source. |
Comments:
Login to let us know what you think
MARKETPLACE search vendors | advanced search
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
|
Waco has developed a reputation for a rocket-docket in patent litigation. It’s an important choice to find the right lawyer in Waco for your important patent litigation matter. When people in the know make the hire, they hire Dunnam & Dunnam. Lawyers that are competent, hard-working, focused are a rare find. Few attorneys have the commitment to quality, collegiality, and loyalty of the Waco personal injury attorney, You can search for attorneys with loyalty, leadership, accountability. These attorneys show financial generosity and a sense of fairness to their colleagues. For nearly 100 years, people in Waco have hired the firm when the results matter. at Dunnam & Dunnam are among the most respected in the Central Texas area. They have the experience in trials and mediations to guide your case in the right way. There are few important decisions at the outset of the case that can turn the tide in your favor. Choosing the right lawyer is one of them.