Jan. 12--DECATUR -- Staffing cuts to balance the city's 2014 budget ended up touching eight different areas of the city, with five layoffs among the 20 positions eliminated.
Officials announced in November that the cuts would be needed to fill a $1.6 million deficit, created by the combination of rising expenses and flat revenues. It was initially unclear which departments would be affected because some employees had "bumping rights" through their union contracts.
Responding to a request from the Herald & Review, the city released a final list of the affected positions Friday. The largest number jobs, seven, were eliminated from the Decatur Fire Department. The city's human resources department experienced the biggest percentage loss, with half of its six positions cut.
"We are still adjusting and figuring out exactly how we're going to continue to provide services with the staff that we have remaining, and we will figure it out," City Manager Ryan McCrady said. "There could be some bumps along the way, but the staff that's here is pretty committed to doing their jobs and committed to serving our citizens."
Ultimately, seven vacant positions were eliminated, six people retired, five employees were laid off and two employees were reassigned, leaving their former positions empty.
Four positions in the development services division were cut, with just one of those already vacant. Public works lost two vacant engineering technician positions.
The police department, water distribution division, neighborhood outreach division and municipal services division each lost one position.
City officials had previously said the fire department would operate eight companies, rather than nine, to deal with its personnel loss.
The effects of the cuts are still shaking out in other areas of the city, McCrady said.
"Really, what happens after this is, you start figuring out what critical things need to get done and start assigning them to the appropriate places," McCrady said. "But it's really hard to figure out where stuff is going to land until you're operating for a while."
In general, remaining city workers are taking on more responsibilities and turning to technology to increase efficiency whenever possible.
McCrady praised his employees' ability and willingness to help each other and adapt to changes. He said it was tough to measure whether, or how much, morale suffered as a result of the cuts.
"I communicate frequently with our employees to let them know what's going on. Hopefully, they don't feel a lot of uncertainty about the situation," McCrady said. "But I think in most places in employment nowadays, there's always concern about what the future holds.
"What my employees experience is probably no different than what employees in private industry are experiencing, too."
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