Buyout Blues
UW-EC and UW-Stout will lose 148 faculty and staff
One out of every four faculty and staff members offered early buyouts from UW-Eau Claire and UW-Stout have agreed to leave their jobs as part of the two schools’ efforts to deal with state budget cutbacks.
Out of 593 eligible faculty and staff on the two campuses, 148 volunteered to retire under the Voluntary Separation Incentive Program (VSIP). The incentive program was introduced in March by Chancellor James Schmidt of UW-Eau Claire in response to the proposed $300 million cut in UW System funding included in Gov. Scott Walker’s 2015-17 biennial state budget.
In April, Chancellor Bob Meyer of UW-Stout followed suit and announced that university’s decision to offer buyouts to its faculty and staff. The incentive program allowed certain faculty members or academic staff 55 years of age or older, with at least five years of service, to opt for early retirement with a buyout equal to half their yearly salary.
“We were losing some of the true gems. Their absence will be felt. I wish we had not received this enormous cut from the state of Wisconsin.” – UWEC Chancellor James Schmidt, on faculty leaving due to a buyout plan
Though the budget cut was reduced to $250 million in the final state budget, UW-Eau Claire absorbed cuts equal to $7.7 million annually, while the cut at UW-Stout amounted to $5.3 million per year.
Meyer said the VSIP program is intended to give the university as much flexibility as possible to meet fiscal challenges. He added that UW-Stout is looking at every option to maintain the quality of education that students have come to expect.
In all, 50 faculty and staff members from UW-Stout and 98 from UW-Eau Claire decided to accept the buyout. Some of those eligible at both universities did not apply to the program while others who applied eventually decided not to accept the agreement.
“The reason that I decided to leave the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire after this coming semester is that I was and am dismayed at the falling public funding for the university and as a result the decreased quality of the offering of the university,” said Michael Dorsher, professor of communication and journalism. “I very much felt I was in danger that I was losing the type of job that I had at UW-EC.”
Schmidt said it was sad to lose well-qualified faculty and staff such as Dorsher because of financial strains.
“I had stomach pain.” Schmidt said. “We were losing some of the true gems. Their absence will be felt. I wish we had not received this enormous cut from the state of Wisconsin.”
Schmidt said had it not been for the VSIP plan, layoffs would have been based on seniority and roughly 130 people would have been laid off as opposed to the voluntary departure of 98 from UW-Eau Claire. He said he hopes to meet with all 98 people who accepted the buyout to thank them, invite them back to visit, and to encourage them to stay involved with the university.
Not all universities are following this model around the state, but Schmidt said having the Voluntary Separation Incentive Program will serve the Chippewa Valley better. While layoffs could mean people leaving the area, offering the VSIP means there is a better chance that people will stay in the region and continue to contribute to the community in their various roles outside of the university.
Symone Foster is a journalism major with a multimedia communications minor at UW-Eau Claire. A version of this article originally appeared in the Chippewa Valley Post (cvpost.org), “an online source for community and nonprofit news in Eau Claire, Chippewa and Dunn counties.”
