ATLANTA
Georgia colleges are hammering out plans to furlough employees for six days this school year.
Georgia State University and the University of Georgia held forums with faculty, staff and students Thursday to talk about the unpaid leave mandated by the state Board of Regents last week. The board hopes to save $42 million by furloughing most of the university system’s 40,000 employees, including faculty, though the days must be taken when students are not scheduled to be in class.
The Regents are trying to slash up to 8 percent of the budget for Georgia colleges and universities as state tax revenue collections continue to plummet.
UGA president Michael Adams told employees and students gathered on the Athens campus Thursday that the university is budgeted to receive $440 million from the state this year, less than what the university received in 2002. In that time, the state’s flagship campus has grown by 2,000 students, he said.
So far, the campus has avoided layoffs by not filling vacant jobs, but that may no longer be an option, Adams said.
“We can’t go much further here without resorting to layoffs,” he told the crowd. “There comes a point where there are no more savings without eliminating people.”
