University Gazette

Moeser: we need to keep key personnel

The May 23 meeting of the University Board of Trustees was the last one before the start of a new fiscal year and the resolution of a state budget crisis that stands as the worst in recent memory.

As a result, much of the discussion focused on how the University must react to deep spending cuts that legislators have yet to determine.

Chancellor James Moeser, as he has throughout the year, cautioned about the need to address the current crisis without becoming ensnared in it and losing sight of long-term goals toward which the University must remain committed.

Yes, the state's deficit is now estimated at $2 billion.

Yes, the University, along with other UNC campuses, could face recurring cuts no lower than 5 percent and as high as 10 percent. Such cuts would leave the University with permanent reductions in state support ranging from $20 million to more than $40 million.

Yes, University officials must do everything they can to protect core missions even as these deep cuts are made.

But at the same time, Moeser said, "I think it is important that we do not become obsessed, or depressed, with the present situation."

One piece of the budget picture that Moeser discussed is the importance of retaining key faculty and top administrators.

To make the point, he cited the decision of Marian Moore to leave her post as vice chancellor of information technology to take a vice presidency at Boston College.

Moore, because of her success with the Carolina Computing Initiative, wireless technology deployment and other programs, had become an attractive target for other great universities.

In the nearly two years he has been here, Moeser said, two other universities attempted to recruit Moore. These attempts were blocked, in part, by being able to offer Moore more pay to stay here.

In a time of tight budgets, Carolina becomes particularly vulnerable to losing people -- not only like Moore but rising stars within the faculty as well.

Consider: Even with revenue generated by a campus-based student tuition increase last year, Carolina salaries fell compared with those offered at other Research I and Association of American Universities (AAU) campuses.

In the category of assistant professors, Carolina's ranking fell from 26th to 29th.

In the category of associate professors, Carolina's ranking fell from 23rd to 27th.

In the category of professors, Carolina's ranking fell from 29th to 31st.

Moeser had to look no farther than the private neighbor up the road to further the point.

The annual salary survey conducted by the American Association of University Professors, released this spring, showed pay for full professors at Carolina increased by 2.5 percent last year, compared to 4.6 percent at Duke University. What's worse, before the increase Duke professors were already making $15,000 more than their counterparts here.

In much the same way, associate professors at Carolina received an average pay increase of 1.1 percent, compared to an average increase of 4.4 percent for associate professors at Duke.

The greatest disparity in salary increases between the two competitors came with assistant professors. At Carolina, the average pay increase in this category was 3.1 percent, compared to the average 8.5 percent increase awarded at Duke.

Moeser said he cited Duke specifically because Carolina competes with private universities that often have more resources than public ones. And in the case of Duke, a professor would not even have to sell his or her house to make the move.

"If we stand still, we are losing ground against our competition," Moeser said.

That competitive climate also exists for administrators, and in the past year Moeser has granted several key officials pay raises that exceeded increases received by most employees.

Moeser has said that, if he had known in January what he did now about the severity of the state budget, he probably would not have granted some of the increases because of concerns about perception and sensitivity.

He also has said the increases, some of which were funded by non-state sources such as private funds and overhead receipts, were made to fend off raids by competitors or address inequities.

The raises were questioned at a June 5 Employee Forum meeting because of a state budget climate in which the University is turning to actions including layoffs.

But one forum member said the campus needs to keep in mind the bigger picture, in which the sour economy has led to many layoffs in the private sector and chief executives receive raises so that companies can retain their expertise to help guide them through tough times.

Also at the forum meeting, Laurie Charest, associate vice chancellor for Human Resources, said that some employees have been notified that they will be laid off in anticipation of state budget cuts for next fiscal year, which begins July 1.

Carolina administrators have said that the expected cuts of between 5 percent and 10 percent could result in as many as 300 staff positions being eliminated, with many of those being vacant. Charest said that the University will work with an outside firm to help laid-off employees find new jobs. Details of the arrangement are still being sorted out.

For information about the University's layoff policy for SPA employees, go to the Human Resources web site at www.ais.unc.edu/hr/ and click on "Layoff FAQ" in the left-hand frame. The page includes information on items such as severance pay and the factors behind deciding who gets laid off.

University Gazette