Iowa human services to cut 236 jobs

[The Straight Story]

Iowa human services to cut 236 jobs

DES MOINES, Iowa --- Iowa's human services chief said Wednesday he expects his state agency will have to cut 236 positions through layoffs and attrition in light of expected budget cuts and no funding for salary adjustments in the fiscal year that begins July 1.

Chuck Palmer, director of the Iowa Department of Human Services, said his department currently has 5,029 state-funded positions while the latest fiscal 2012 budget projections will provide enough state money to support 4,777 positions --- a 5 percent reduction that he termed "most sobering."

In a memo to DHS staff, Palmer said he expected that half of the 236 positions that will need to be reduced could be managed by keeping funded positions vacant.

"The remaining positions will be laid off, for a total reduction of about 230 funded positions. Our current hiring freeze will continue indefinitely, with only the most critical positions being considered for filling," he said in his memo. "In order to honor our contractual obligations without a funded salary adjustment, we will need to eliminate about 136 positions, or a little more than half of the expected 230 reduction in positions. The remaining reductions are due to provisions of the governor's budget recommendations, which we assume will pass, and due to budget-cutting legislation approved by the legislature last spring."

http://wcfcourier.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/article_14fa3c7a-3a96-11e0-895c-001cc4c03286.html

[arbusto_baboso]

1. The irony is that those employees will leave their jobs and come right back in the doors...

as applicants for benefits.

Iowa won't save one fucking dime by doing this.

[Bluzmann57]

2. And our *@!^ governor gets paid

And he gets paid twice because he gets his salary and he gets a state pension because he was governor before. As a matter of fact, in today's local paper there ewas an article about this very thing. His spokesman said branstad made a "sacrifice" in pay because he made over $300,000 in his prior job as a University president. To which I say, You dumbass, you chose to run so suck it up and at least give up your paycheck.