California’s budget crisis has reached full force, and every sector is facing serious crunch time. From infrastructure management to public education ‘mdash; including here at the University of California ‘mdash; we’re all feeling the burn of the state’s multibillion-dollar cash shortage, forcing Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to implement mandatory leaves of absence for many state workers in an effort to cut down on spending.
While unpopular (Department of Motor Vehicles closures, for example, have increased waiting periods in an already hellish establishment) and oftentimes annoying, such measures must be enacted to prevent the deficit from ballooning any further. Within the UC system, President Mark G. Yudof has proposed that staff begin developing a framework of policies and procedures to be used to institute unpaid leaves and salary freezes should they become necessary to sustain university operations ‘mdash; a precautionary measure at this point, but vital considering the Legislature has indicated it will not be able to honor, to the tune of several million dollars, the university’s full 2009-10 funding request.
Yudof’s plan has created uneasiness within many departments as staff members begin designing furlough protocols. Should they become unavoidable, students must be ready to brace for a potentially large impact on services as the university temporarily ceases certain operations, because work becomes backlogged when offices close their doors. If required leaves do become a reality, however inconvenient, they might just teach the university a big, fat lesson: responsible fiscal management ‘mdash; via consolidation of programs, ending exorbitant salary hikes ‘mdash; must be the top priority at all times, not just during state budget crises.