COMMUNITY COLLEGES TO CUT STUDENT, TEMPORARY JOBS.

Byline: Sharline Chiang Daily News Staff Writer

Student workers and other temporary employees at Pierce, Mission, Valley and the six other Los Angeles Community College District campuses will be laid off by March 12 to help close a $13 million deficit.

District trustees voted Wednesday to make the emergency cuts, which could save the district up to $2 million. The layoffs will mainly affect clerical employees hired to help out during peak seasons in bookstores, financial aid, admissions and registration offices, district and campus officials said.

In the scramble to close the projected deficit by June, trustees also voted to freeze all nonsalary expenses, recoup insurance refunds and shift maintenance expenses from the unrestricted fund to the restricted fund. Those moves would save an additional $3 million, officials said.

The layoffs will not affect part-time instructors. Students with work-study jobs covered under state and federal programs also will be spared.

Some employees fear layoffs will further tax offices and inconvenience students who've felt the pinch of previous cuts this year.

``It should be a burden on our regular staff, lines will get longer, there will be more waiting,'' said Tom Hiltabiddle, college financial administrator at Valley College. He estimated some 50 Valley workers could face layoffs.

For individual campuses, Wednesday's vote will mean fewer supplies and a shift of ``block grant'' funds reserved to update technology, libraries and instructional materials on maintenance projects.

``Although these are good first steps, we need to recognize they are only first steps in eliminating,'' the $13 million deficit, said board member Elizabeth Garfield.

On Wednesday, at least one speaker worried that laid-off student workers will likely drop out, furthering enrollment declines and revenues.

``If we eliminate those job opportunities then they may not be able to take classes,'' said Winston Butler, head of the district's Academic Senate.

Trustees will vote Friday to open talks with more than 5,000 unionized faculty and staff to consider deferring pay raises, furloughing employees and reducing retirement benefits. The board also will ask officials downtown to cut $500,000 out of the remaining headquarters budget.

Also Wednesday, California Community Colleges Vice Chancellor Patrick Lenz met with the board on district finances.

Last month, the district was moved to a more serious priority level on the state chancellor's financial watch list after an audit showed its general fund balance fell below 3 percent of total expenditures.

Despite the crisis facing the district, in an interview before the meeting, Heinselman said the district is far from facing a state takeover or bailout.