The Daily Star, Oneonta, NY - otsego county news, delaware county news, oneonta news, oneonta sports

Local News

Discussion

COMMENTING ON STORIES:

Welcome to our story comments feature. We welcome your thoughts and your opinions, including the unpopular ones. We only ask that you keep your conversations clean, civil and on the topic of the story you are commenting on.

Coinciding with our websites redesign, we launched our new story comments feature through Disqus.

Disqus gives users the ability to log into our story comments feature so that they may be able to track their conversations, receive emails when their comments get a reply or to even have your comments update onto your Facebook or Twitter accounts.

For the time being, our story comments feature will continue to have the ability to post comments anonymously. We reserve the right to require registration in the future using your name and verified email address.

Not all comments are deemed printable. Some are disqualified at the newspaper’s discretion for a number of different reasons. Please follow our Online Rules of Conduct at all times.

RULES OF CONDUCT:

We reserve the right to remove comments that are unacceptable, to wit:

1. False and inacurate statements.
2. Personal attacks. Explicit name-calling.
3. Harassing, harmful, vulgar, obscene and defamatory language.
4. Threatening statements or statements that suggest violence.
5. Hate speech of any kind.
6. Intolerant comments on religion, race, age, gender, sexual preference or disabilities.
7. Accusations of criminal activity.
8. Content that is harmful to children and minors in any way.
9. References to any type of sexual activity and other private matters.
10. Random and inflammatory statements that are off topic.
11. Advertising of any kind.
12. Typing in all caps.

WE ENCOURAGE REASONABLE AND COURTEOUS COMMENTS THAT:

1. Create conversation on issues of interest and concern to fellow readers and local community members.
2. Express opinions and contrarian views.
3. Stimulate debate with respectful language.
4. Stay within the boundaries of these rules.

WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO SUSPEND OR TERMINATE ACCESS FOR:

1. Violating any of these Online Rules of Conduct.
2. Deliberately disrupting discussions with repetitive messages, meaningless messages or spam.
3. Misrepresentation of identity or impersonating another user.

WE WELCOME:

1. Flagging violations of these rules that you observe to our attention.

MONITORING:

We monitor comments regularly Monday - Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Approval of comments outside of this time (including weekends) will be sporadic.
comments powered by Disqus
May 7, 2010

Paterson's proposed cuts concern area state workers

SubHead

By Denise Richardson Staff Writer

Final exams and commencement are about two weeks away for SUNY students in Oneonta and Delhi.

But the possibility that college professors and staff could be furloughed starting May 17 has raised questions whether students will be prevented from graduating on time May 22.

Meanwhile, a local legislator said he is unlikely to vote for the governor's next expected emergency budget measure, and the state union president blasted the governor for "beating up on unions."

The state has been running on emergency spending plans since the budget lapsed March 31. Gov. David Paterson's next coverage plan, expected to be voted on by the Legislature on Monday, calls for furloughs of unionized workers to keep the state solvent, The Associated Press reported. Furloughs for 100,000 state workers would begin the week of May 17, and workers will have to take a day of unpaid leave each week the state operates on an emergency spending plan.

"It's bad," Phillip H. Smith, president of the United University Professions, said Thursday. "It doesn't make good economic sense to deprive people of income."

The plan would cut pay by 20 percent, Smith said, and for each $1 generated by SUNY, $6 to $8 travels into the community.

Many UUP members, including professors and staff at SUNY Oneonta and Delhi, work on 10-month contracts but are paid over 12 months, Smith said, and concerns are that the furlough plan would dock pay for work already performed.

UUP, which has 35,000 members and is the largest higher-education union in the country, has reached out to the governor to remind him of the negative impact furloughs would cause, Smith said.

"Obviously, we'd like him to back away from the furlough plan," Smith said. "He's certainly beating up on the unions."

At the State University College at Oneonta and at the State University College of Technology at Delhi, final class days, exams and commencement extend beyond the May 17 date for the start of furloughs.

SUNY Oneonta spokesman Glenn Mayer said local officials have been in touch with the SUNY system administration about potential furloughs.

"In the event that the proposed furloughs are adopted, we expect to receive guidelines from SUNY for their implementation," Mayer said in a e-mail Thursday. "Our students are our first priority, of course. We'll make every effort to ensure that any possible furloughs do not interfere with classes, final exams or commencement."

William Simons, president of UUP at SUNY Oneonta, deferred comment on the union plan to the state office.

Juliette Price, editor of the SUNY Oneonta State Times, said she has talked with college administrators and UUP officials, who expressed a commitment to avoiding problems with exams, submitting final grades or commencement. From that perspective, furloughs "shouldn't be too much of a crisis even if they do go through," she said.

However, Rick Heil, president of the SUNY Oneonta Student Association, said the uncertainty is stirring consternation among some students, especially seniors who want to know if they will be walking at commencement and picking up a diploma.

The idea of a professor not showing up for class or having less time to prepare grades because of furloughs is disturbing, he said, and questions also remain about summer sessions, which already have shortened, intensified schedules.

"There are really a lot of unknowns here," Heil said. "It's unsettling."

SUNY recognizes the fiscal crisis of the state and has already dealt with budget cuts and other fiscal setbacks during the past two years, SUNY spokesman Daniel Henahan said.

"We're aware of the possibility of furloughs," Henahan said. "We are working with the campuses."

Henahan didn't have more details on plans Thursday afternoon.

Furloughs could have an impact on staff from grounds crews to professors, Joel Smith, spokesman for SUNY Delhi, said, and having a curtailed staff would be challenging, especially given the term-end activities.

"We'll do everything we can to minimize the impact to students and their families," Smith said. "We will do what it takes to ensure that students get what they need."

New York's Senate and Assembly leaders this week said they won't try to block the governor's plan, the AP reported.

But Sen. James Seward, R-Milford, said he has voted against each of the five emergency financial extenders as a protest on behalf of constituents. Lack of progress adopting a spending plan and not adhering to budget reform are among reasons for opposing the short-term measures, he said.

"I have not been supporting the budget extensions," Seward said. "I don't expect to support the one on Monday."

The state must get on track with developing a budget through the committee system, Seward said, and adjusting personnel spending would be better reached through negotiations with unions.

"I question the legality of furloughs," Seward said. Furloughs would negatively impact the "lives of innocent workers," he said, and in the long run would cost the state money in litigation costs.

The only exceptions to furloughs are to be those workers in public safety and health care, the AP reported. The Civil Service Employees Association has already said it is preparing to defend its position that furloughs are illegal.

Under law, the Legislature can only accept or reject the bill, not amend it. Rejecting the appropriation bill would shut down government.

Paterson said previously he asked the public employee unions to voluntarily delay their 4-percent raises, accept several days of "lag pay" that would be paid out at retirement, and agree to other measures to avoid layoffs. The state will run out of money this month, he said.

Text Only
Local News

Additional Content
Join the Debate
Helium
Additional Resources
CNHI News Service

Poll

Do you think we will have a big snow storm the rest of the winter?

Yes
No
     View Results