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Easley
fires 278 state workers to ease budget crunch
 Gov.
Mike Easley on Monday directed agency heads to give notice to
the 278 employees whose positions are being eliminated as part
of an overall effort to deal with the state budget crisis.
Employees in positions that the Senate, the House and agency
heads have agreed to cut will received their 30-day notice of
termination beginning Tuesday.
Easley ordered his cabinet secretaries and asked Council of
State members to proceed with layoffs that will not impact
vital services. There are an additional 609 vacant positions
that are also being eliminated. Many of the jobs are in the
Department of Health and Human Services and state university
system.
"Like any business or family, state government must live
within its means," said Easley. "These layoffs are
part of what we must do to begin to get a balanced
budget."
Easley's directive means that the employees will receive
30-day notices of termination beginning Tuesday. House and
Senate budget plans called for eliminating the jobs in order
to balance the state budget in the face of declining tax
collections. Moving ahead with the layoffs before a state
spending plan is finalized will prevent lawmakers from having
to find additional savings to balance the budget.
Last month, Senate Republicans charged that 2,914 state jobs
that have been vacant for nine months or more and that
eliminating all of them could save the state $89 million. But
state officials said that number includes many jobs that are
funded outside the General Fund, including many paid through
highway use taxes, research grants, federal funds and agency
receipts.
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