A
Year Later, OC Offices Feel Chill of Hiring Freeze
By
Renata Silberblatt
Over
the past year, the College’s senior staff has frozen more
than fifty positions. On Thursday, Vice President for Finance Andy
Evans said that 26 of these vacant positions have been eliminated.
The hiring freeze, which began last year, is expected to remain
through this year and will continue “indefinitely,”
College President Nancy Dye said. The number of positions frozen
has decreased from 50 to 30, due mostly to the College’s elimination
of some positions.
Although “critically needed” jobs will still be filled,
Dye could not define what made a position critically needed. She
stated that it is up to each division head to determine if a position
must be filled.
“Right now,” she said, “the College is operating
without a Director of Admissions, which is clearly an example of
a critically needed position.”
“It’s a little bit of a misnomer to call it a total
freeze in that we do sometimes unfreeze a position, she added.
Dye also said no single division of the College has been more affected
by the budget cuts and hiring freeze than another and that all divisions
across the College have all had to make changes.
Vacant positions currently exist in numerous College offices. Career
Services, College Relations, Development, Student Academic Services,
Student Life, ResLife, Facilities, Custodial Services and the Allen
Memorial Art Museum, among others, all have eliminated or frozen
positions.
But some, including custodians, disagree. There are numerous vacant
positions, including individuals on sick leave, in custodial services.
Although a custodial employee of Noah commented that the hiring
freeze has not affected her, she stated that the custodial department
has had to make some changes. Because the College has been unable
to hire full-time custodians, the College has hired “floaters,”
or custodians who are not given benefits. These floaters are given
a third shift: they must work from 11p.m.to 7:30 a.m.
Associate Dean of Residential Life and Services Kim LaFond said
that his department has saved money by starting meals two days after
students arrived on campus. He has also removed the faculty associate
program, which allowed 130 to 150 faculty members to bring their
families twice a week to College cafeterias and eat with students
(now only foreign language professors may do this) and cut down
on Fall Break dining options.
Student Life, under Dean Peter Goldsmith, has said that the effects
on student services are minimal.
“There are several positions in Student Life that remain vacant
because of the hiring freeze,” Dean of students Peter Goldsmith
stated. “For example, there are fewer live-in professionals
in Residential Life.” He also noted that there is a combined
Residential Life and Student Academic Services secretarial position
open. The two departments are looking to fill the job “internally.”
Dean Goldsmith described filling a position internally as “rearranging
deck chairs,” promoting someone from one job to another. Although
filling a position internally may create a vacancy elsewhere, the
individual’s old position may still need to be filled.
However, Dean Goldsmith noted that there is a difference between
frozen positions and vacant positions. While there is an open position
on the Safety and Security staff because of a supervisor’s
resignation, the job is not frozen, and the College is “working
to fill” this position.
Both Dean Goldsmith and Associate Dean LaFond stressed that although
the hiring freeze and financial cuts force their divisions to trim
their budgets, each division is focused on continuing to meet students’
needs. |