LCC staff OKs plan to save 27 jobs.

Byline: Greg Bolt The Register-Guard

A second union at Lane Community College has agreed to give up raises and pay more for health insurance to avoid layoffs.

The 410-member classified employees union voted this week to forgo a 2.4 percent cost of living raise next year and pay an extra $5 for a visit to the doctor to help the college save the $1 million it needed to prevent layoffs. Without the concessions, as many as 27 people would have lost their jobs.

Union President Bob Baldwin said the vote came down to a choice between shared sacrifice and watching co-workers lose jobs. In the end, 92 percent of the members who voted chose to share the pain.

"The fundamental question that the vote was hinging on was the classified staff pulling together to save co-workers' jobs," he said. "And faced with that particular challenge, that's what people voted to do."

An undetermined number of part-time positions, mainly fill-in jobs done by on-call employees who work less than half time, will be eliminated as part of the deal.

Also, about 50 people have agreed to work fewer hours over summer term, and a few will take a longer unpaid leave of absence or leave their jobs permanently.

The increase in the medical co-pay will raise the classified workers' out-of-pocket cost for a doctor visit to $15 from the current $10.

Classified workers will keep their step raises, which will give almost all union members a 4.3 percent raise next year. Step raises are given for years of service up to a certain limit, and because an additional step is being added this year most workers will get a raise.

The deal applies only to the 2007-08 fiscal year. The contract expires after that, and negotiations on a new pact will start early next year.

Classified employees perform a variety of work on the LCC campus, ranging from accounting and clerical work to maintenance and landscaping. The union lost 37 positions to budget cuts last year.

Although the reduction in part-time hours won't affect classrooms directly, it will show, Baldwin said. It could mean that some service desks or offices won't be open during the lunch hour or that fewer cashiers will be working at the bookstore or the food court, for example.

The vote by the classified union followed a similar vote last month by the faculty union. Faculty also gave up a cost-of-living raise and agreed to other changes to save about $640,000 and prevent the layoff of 15 teachers.

LCC President Mary Spilde said she is amazed and grateful that employees are willing to make personal sacrifices to save jobs.

"I think it's remarkable that both of our unions have stepped up," she said. "It just says so much about their dedication to Lane and its students that they would be willing to do this."

The votes were prompted by the college's effort to plug an $8.8 million gap in next year's general fund budget. That includes $3 million that needs to be shifted into a reserve fund to protect the school's bond rating.

Of the rest, the college will save $2 million by not filling vacant positions, and the rest will come from a variety of budget cuts.

The budget committee has approved the spending plan, which awaits final approval by the college board.

Because the original budget proposal included savings from layoffs, the union concessions don't prevent any of the other cuts that are on the table.

Instead, the concessions allow the college to balance its budget without laying off employees.

"This is sort of the last piece to fall into place for us, aside from the Legislature," Spilde said.

LCC could end up with less of a shortfall than anticipated if the Legislature increases funding for community colleges above the amount proposed by the governor in December.

Although additional state funding remains a possibility, it appears unlikely that any increase will be enough to change LCC's spending plans signifi- cantly.

Spilde said the college is trying to get its revenue and expenses back in line so it doesn't go through the same cycle of shortfalls and cuts every year.

She said any additional state revenue is likely to be spread out over the two-year biennium to help stabilize the budget.