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The state’s voluntary buyout program for state employees is not going as well as anticipated, Gov. Phil Bredesen said Monday, raising the specter of layoffs.

Only about 1,400 state workers have sought the state’s buyout as of the end of last week, Bredesen said, well below the target of nearly 2,300 needed. The deadline for state employees to inform the state that they wish to take the package is Aug. 5.

“The numbers are not stacking up yet, and the major impact of that is that it opens up the possibility of having to do something more unpleasant -- which is the form of actual layoffs -- later on in the year,” the governor said.
Lower-than-expected revenues for the end of last fiscal year, as well as for the new fiscal year that started July 1, spurred the governor to seek about $64 million in savings through buyouts from state workers.
Buyout packages were sent to about 12,000 state workers in mid-June, with a goal of seeking almost 2,300 to take the offers and voluntarily leave the state payroll. A hiring freeze is also in place. The governor had originally expected to reduce the payroll by just over 2,000 state jobs, but that number grew as department heads reviewed where to make job cuts in their departments.
Bredesen said he had expected too many applicants for the buyouts, not too few, and that he was surprised that applications have so far fallen short of expectations.
He said the worsening economy could be a factor. “Maybe because of the economic conditions, not as many people are taking it,” he said.
            

    本报讯 过去一年中，州长布莱德森面临着庞大的预算压力，州政府的赤字，让这位颇得民众好评的州长头痛不已，裁员成了州政府和州长的首选。上个月，州长提出了买断计划，并将买断计划送给了州政府的12，000员工，该计划希望有2，300员工自愿接受该计划，为州政府节省大约6，400万的开销。州长最初的计划只是裁员2，000人，不过，部门主管们又增加了300个，使总数达到2，300名。同时，州政府冻结所有部门的招聘计划，即在州政府瘦身计划完成前，州政府是不会有任何空缺。

    州长布莱德森的计划提出后，一万多名的州府工作人员中，自愿接受离职或退休计划者寥寥无几。截至到上周末，只有1，400名员工自愿接受这一买断合约，据州政府的目标尚有巨大的缺口。布莱德森对此感到失望，他认为，目前的经济状况和失业率，让更多的人对该计划却步。布莱德森和州政府正在考虑下一步对策，让来年的赤字不致过大。这一项计划的截止日期为8月5日，州长希望更多的员工能够接受这一计划。

    据悉，在州府中工作的华人尚属少数，且多数是有技术或高学历的员工，即使州府强制裁员，对华裔的影响也非常有限。本报记者向州长办公室了解，发言人说，该计划主要是针对年届退休者和普通Staff，当然任何人都可以选择。