Day 156

My absence from this blog has been unacceptable. But given the fact that this is my busiest time of year, I forgive me, and thank you in advance for your forgiveness as well.

We had a staff meeting this week so our boss could update us on the budget situation, the Operational Excellence project going on around campus, and a few other office details. Recently, our department HR person left, and none of us really thought she would be replaced any time soon, if at all. We all suspected that the consultants on campus would recommend consolidating HR, and possibly eliminate the position from departments, or at least re-configure the roll. Well, we were right and wrong: the consulting group will very likely make recommendations on ways to centralize some HR functions, but not all. And, in the meantime, we have enough of a need in this department, that we've decided to fill the spot at 75%. The reduction from 100% is based on the fact that we are very low on faculty, and will be low on student instructors because of university budget cuts, so that the job needs will be lower than normal over at least the next few years. The extra workload for our other two staff members who can take care of HR functions has been a bit much, I think, which is also a likely driver as to why they are filling a position during a time of shrinking budgets.

Another bit of news that sort of sounded nice, but confuses me, is that the campus is lifting the hiring freeze on faculty hires for next year, and has all but promised that faculty and staff furloughs will be over. However, departments will likely be asked to cut another 5% from staffing budgets, and the money in the pot for faculty will remain flat. I am most definitely not an accountant, but I think there is a puzzle piece missing in there that has yet to be designed. Our manager predicts/hopes that this coming year will be the bottom of the valley before things start looking better. I wondered aloud how hiring faculty, ending the furlough, and cutting staff budgets bodes delightful for those of us on the staff side. "I see your point," my boss says. She and her colleagues posed a similar query at a recent meeting with campus money and human resources people. It seems that the campus is kind of holding its collective payroll breath because as it turns out, forty percent of our workforce is at retirement age. Forty percent! They are predicting/hoping that if and when the economy improves, retirement funds will start to look healthy again, and people will start retiring en masse. This will free up money for new (cheaper, younger) faculty and staff. Ahhh, we can all breathe now.

I was dismayed to receive a comment that my blog sounds terribly depressing. Well, when you are living on the edge in a non-profit career to begin with, and the state government responsible for supporting said non-profit is not only cutting your funds, but borrowing money back, it can be a little nerve wracking. Not that UC is going anywhere, but I think we were all a little nervous there for a while, and it isn't exactly clear where we are headed. All of that said, no, it is not too depressing here. Working on a campus is truly wonderful, and my fellow staff are truly wonderful, too. So fear not, my loyal readers! Things are scary and shaky, but so far, fairly intact. Pink slips and padlocks are depressing, and we are nowhere near that point just yet.