UAB Furloughs Staffers And Cuts Pay Amid Pandemic
UAB announced Monday that more than 300 university staff members will be temporarily furloughed in an effort to offset significant financial losses due to COVID-19. UAB Medicine projects a $230 million loss through the end of September. Meanwhile, the university projects a $40 million loss.
The furlough will begin May 10 and last until July 31. The University System said the furlough period could be shorter or longer depending on the impact of the pandemic.
The furloughs affect staff that can’t work remotely. UAB President Ray Watts said this includes jobs like carpenters. Furloughed employees will be able to retain their benefits, according to the university.
“These actions are a reflection only of the harsh economic realities of the COVID-19 crisis, not a reflection of the value of UAB faculty and staff or their job performance. We are disappointed that this action has become necessary,” Watts said in a press release.
UAB also announced temporary salary cuts for many clinical faculty and hospital staff including:
- School of Medicine staff who provide direct patient care or do clinical work as a regular part of their job
- University of Alabama Health Services Foundation employees who provide direct patient care or do clinical work as a regular part of their job
- Staff at UAB Health System
- Staff at Callahan Eye Hospital
Clinical department faculty at the School of Medicine will see an average pay cut of 7%. Senior leaders including department chairs will see a 10% cut. The other temporary pay cuts are on a sliding scale:
- Hourly wage employees making $15 or less per hour: 0% pay cut
- $0 – $31,200: 0% pay cut
- $31,201 – $50,000: 3% pay cut
- $50,001 – $75,000: 4% pay cut
- $75,001 – $125,000: 5% pay cut
- $125,001 – $200,000: 6% pay cut
- Greater than $200,000: 7% pay cut
UAB leadership also faces pay cuts ranging from seven to 15%.
This news comes just days after the university system announced it would stop matching payments to voluntary 403(b) retirement plans through the end of September.
UAB says faculty and staff who want to support their colleagues are encouraged to give to the UAB Benevolent Fund, which is now being applied toward UAB’s Coronavirus COVID-19 Relief Funds.
EDITOR’S NOTE: UAB holds WBHM’s broadcast license, but our news and business departments operate independently.
HBO’s new Billy Joel documentary is revelatory — even if it pulls some punches
The new two-part documentary, which premieres Friday on HBO, is a good example of the tension between access and objectivity that filmmakers face in making documentaries on celebrities.
A wildfire destroyed the historic Grand Canyon Lodge. It burned down once before
The Grand Canyon Lodge is the only hotel on the park's North Rim, which is closed for the rest of the season due to wildfire risk. The hotel was already rebuilt once, after a kitchen fire in 1932.
Why the Federal Reserve’s building renovations are attracting the White House’s ire
The Fed's $2.5 billion headquarters renovation is attracting mounting criticism from the Trump administration, which had been already attacking the central bank for not cutting interest rates.
Supreme Court says Trump’s efforts to close the Education Department can continue
The Trump administration had appealed a decision that had directed it to stop gutting the U.S. Education Department and to reinstate many of the workers the government had laid off.
Trump tells supporters not to ‘waste time’ on Epstein files. They’re not happy
President Trump is facing backlash from his supporters and opponents alike for how his administration has handled the release of evidence surrounding the death of disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein.
24 states sue Trump admin to unfreeze more than $6 billion in education grants
The lawsuit comes two weeks after the Trump administration first notified states it was withholding previously approved funds for migrant education, before- and after- school programs and more.
