City of San Francisco Fires, Will Rehire, Workers at 6.25% Fewer Hours, Pay

Library staff included, no layoffs planned; unions plan challenge

Lynn Blumenstein -- Library Journal, 03/15/2010

• SFPL says services won't be affected by shortened staff hours
• Proposed budget cuts may be reworked
• Unions still in negotiations, could affect budget outcome
• Union steward confident measure will be overruled

Just when you’ve heard it all, here’s another variation on how budget-strapped cities can save money. San Francisco mayor Gavin Newsom has decided to fire the vast majority of city workers, including San Francisco Public Library (SFPL) staffers, and then rehire them at a slight reduction in hours and pay. 

City workers working and being paid for 40 hours a week are to be rehired to work and be compensated for 37.5 hours, a decrease of 6.25 percent, for a savings of $50 million. The city faces a projected $522 million budget deficit for FY10-11, which begins July 1.

Reduction for all versus layoffs for many
"We thought it was the most enlightened alternative of the limited number of choices that we were afforded," said Newsom in a news release. "Go forward with thousands of layoffs or…[allow] the vast majority of people to keep their jobs, and benefits."

On Friday, March 5, some 15,000 city workers received pink slips with 60 days notice but the vast majority of them will be rehired, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

Impact at SFPL
That will be the case at SFPL, Chief of Communications and Adult Services Marcia Schneider told LJ. Approximately 400 FTE staffers were affected at the library, she said.

SFPL’s goal is to rehire staff (at reduced pay) but achieve reduced FTEs without layoffs by eliminating vacant positions. The reduced work week would affect current staffing and scheduling plans but would not impact hours the library is open to the public, she said.

SFPL budget pending
SFPL submitted a $78 million FY10-11 budget in February, but it’s difficult to predict how it will be affected by the layoff/rehiring scenario. The mayor is involved in ongoing negotiations with the unions.

SFPL's budget proposal called for cutting $7.8 million from the FY09-10. budget. It planned to save $2.7 million in staffing costs through the elimination of vacancies, utilizing more part-time staff, and other adjustments. Also it would lower the materials budget to 2008 levels, saving $1.6 million; and reduce spending by $1.1 million in programs, technology, and facilities.

SFPL also would cover the remaining $2.4 million gap by tapping the Library Preservation Fund, a funding mechanism approved by voters in 1994 and renewed in 2009. Also, $2.5 million from the fund reserve would be used to repay debt used for branch expansion.

However, Schneider told LJ that with the mayor’s plan, SFPL might be able to "achieve greater savings than under the library’s proposal" (albeit at the expense of salaries). SFPL in any case is planning "operational efficiencies" and eliminating vacancies instead of implementing layoffs, she said.

Union impact still unknown
The vast majority of city workers are represented by unions. SFPL workers (librarians, library technicians and assistants, pages) are represented by SEIU (Service Employees International Union), Local 1021, which has come out strongly against this initiative, as have other city unions, said Schneider. 

Many other employees are represented by IFPTE (International Federation of Professional & Technical Engineers), Local 21, which includes professional, technical and administrative employees.

Loss of full-time status a key issue
Currently, the 37.5 hour work week is in violation of union contracts, Schneider told LJ, as it isn't considered full-time work. 

SEIU Local 1021 steward Cathy Bremer, a 30-year SFPL veteran and head of reference for general collections and humanities, described the loss of full-time status as devastating.  "Part-time workers have very few rights over how many hours and when they'll work," she said.

Mayor Newsom "broke at least five contracts and civil service rules by doing this," said Bremer, who thought that he announced this cost-cutting action as an election tactic. (Newsom declared his candidacy for state lieutenant governor one week after the layoff announcement.)

All the affected unions, along with their lawyers, have formed a coalition to challenge Newsom's plan, said Bremer. "We're pretty confident that we'll come out of this okay," she said.