The current economic downturn has forced school districts across the country to deal with massive budget cuts over the past two years. In some cases, these cuts led districts to make the wrenching decision to lay off teachers. The basic principle is "last hired, first fired;" newer teachers are laid off before more veteran teachers, regardless of…

Organizational downsizing has increased exponentially worldwide and is also affecting the healthcare industry. It is one thing to speak abstractly of the need to reduce costs and quite another to actually tell a worker the bad news that he or she has been laid off. This paper offers practical advice to healthcare managers on conducting unpleasant…

When the budget-cutting ended this year in one rural North Texas school district, the people-moving began. Forced to chop its total staff to 55 employees from 64, the Perrin-Whitt Consolidated Independent school system went the route of many districts across the country: It made the majority of its reductions by encouraging early retirements and…

As more and more school systems are forced to implement reduction-in-force, litigation over reduction in the number of professional personnel, as well as job security, will continue to increase. As a result, there is a need for school administrators to develop a better understanding of the issues, outcomes, and legal trends resulting from…

Since 2008, Italian universities have seen their budgets slashed by 14 percent. And in late 2010 the Italian government passed a law that drastically reduced the number of contract university workers, effectively laying off thousands of postdocs, assistants, researchers, and lecturers. The law also included a planned decrease in the number of…

In uncertain economic times, universities have taken steps to address financial problems by including the use of business models. In 2009, the California State University (CSU) system implemented furloughs of a 10% pay reduction and 18 days removed from the academic calendar. Faculty in 16 CSU schools of social work participated in a Web-based…

Stories abound about the staffing cuts that will have to be made currently, and in the next couple of years, as the ripple effects of the economic crisis impact local and state education budgets. Major budget cuts make teacher layoffs a near inevitability. This raises two very timely questions: what now determines which teachers are laid off, and…

Two years after Congress made the federal government's largest one-time investment in the nation's public schools, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act--the economic-stimulus package--has prevented massive teacher layoffs, spurred states to devise sweeping education overhaul plans, and invigorated the national conversation about turning…

States are finally arriving at the "funding cliff"--the point where about $100 billion in federal economic-stimulus aid for education runs out. The loss seems certain to compound severe budget woes and could mean thousands of school layoffs and the elimination of popular programs and services in districts across the country. The bulk of…

There is a surging need for library services, placing high demands on staff time just as staff time and resources are shrinking. The increased demand coupled with decreased resources puts stress on those on the front lines and on administrators, many of whom are themselves suffering the same financial anxieties as their patrons. Nationwide, public…

The "Great Recession" of 2009 has brought an unprecedented level of financial chaos to public higher education in America. Programs are being reduced, furloughs and layoffs are widespread, class sizes are increasing, sections are being cut, and students can't get into classes needed for graduation. Reports of budget cuts in public…

This qualitative study examines the effects of multiple years of layoff notices on first- or second-year, K-12 teachers employed in a Northern California, suburban school district in 2008-2009. During years of budget crisis in California, teachers new to the profession experienced ongoing employment uncertainty. This study endeavored to understand…

Due to budget shortfalls, teacher furloughs were imposed in 2009 in Hawaii Public Schools. The furloughs resulted in a 2009-2010 school year of 167 days as opposed to the regular school year of 180 days. The purpose of this causal-comparative study with a pretest-posttest design was to examine the found effects of those furloughs on academic…

In spring 2010, institution-wide budget cuts resulted in several layoffs at Framingham State University (FSU), including the position of Associate Dean of the Division of Graduate and Continuing Education (DGCE). In his position as the Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of DGCE, Scott Greenberg asked their Vice President for…

During the summer of 2010, school districts across the country reported almost daily on their plans to lay off staff because of sharp declines in aid. Hundreds of thousands of teachers' jobs were on the line. If these losses materialized, class sizes would skyrocket and educational enrichment activities would be lost. Some districts shortened…