[CED/CD/EAT] FW: University of Arizona Financial Mitigation

Fri Apr 17 17:15:30 MST 2020

I hope you all can take some time to relax this weekend.  There is no need to worry, it does not do us any good, and we are going to work our way through this successfully.

We need a lot more information than we currently have but we are not going to solve any of this over the weekend.

Take good care of yourselves, your family, and colleagues.

Thanks,

Jeff

Jeffrey C. Silvertooth, Ph.D.
Associate Dean
Director of Extension and Economic Development
Division of Agriculture, Life, & Veterinary Sciences, and Cooperative Extension
Forbes 301
University of Arizona
Tucson, Arizona          85721-0036
520-621-7205

From: President Robert C. Robbins <president at comms.arizona.edu>
Sent: Friday, April 17, 2020 10:25 AM
To: Silvertooth, Jeffrey C - (silverto) <Silver at ag.arizona.edu>
Subject: University of Arizona Financial Mitigation

To view this email as a web page, go here.<http://view.comms.arizona.edu/?qs=130f3d0c3ef56bf3525592bb58741aa2751d944b832f056247c9776d1b96f0717f5cdda3c5f3eb21d0709e3e036e1a3694e5e45f2ddd475b323e25fc00a3de57ff9c98d8dd14f56be2f5eed350ed26f5>
[The University of Arizona]

[Executive Office of the President Logo]
Dear Colleagues,

The past month has presented immense challenges. Thank you again for your amazing efforts to protect our students and to provide them with a safe and productive remote learning environment, all while continuing to serve our state in so many other ways. Together, we helped lead the effort to protect the health and safety of our local community and many communities across the state. In partnership with Governor Ducey and the Arizona Department of Health, we are on a path to provide the antibody test kits that will help get us back to work and our students back to campus. Together, we will ensure the University of Arizona survives this crisis, and that we come out of it better prepared to thrive in ways we could not have imagined just two months ago.

The task ahead is not easy, and it depends largely on the resolution of our public health crisis. Along with our entire leadership team, I am grateful for the tremendous sacrifices you already have made, especially as more will be required of all of us at the University.

We are not alone. Everyone is adjusting to this new reality of sacrifice and uncertainty. According to the latest reporting, more than 22 million Americans have filed unemployment claims over the past four weeks, the highest number of claims since the Great Depression. At least one estimate shows 20% of the labor force, 1 in 5, are out of work, and many more are facing reductions in hours and pay. Individuals and families everywhere are feeling the significant impact of this crisis, with many struggling or unable to pay rent, facing shortages and long waits for basic necessities, and experiencing increasing stress and uncertainty. I know this situation is incredibly hard, and it makes it even more difficult to focus on our health and well-being during the pandemic.

This will affect the University just as it is affecting other universities and colleges across the nation. Our financial losses already have been great. We anticipate losing more than $66 million by the end of this fiscal year, ending June 30. Because we are only a month into this crisis, we cannot know the full extent of its effects, but our most credible shortfall projections exceed $250 million. To put that in perspective, recall that our budget reallocations this year, 1.5% for academic units and 3.5% for administrative units, as well as RCM and administrative service charge tax increases totaled $30 million. While these changes caused incredible concern throughout our campus, even requiring layoff plans in some administrative areas, we are now predicting losses more than eight times that amount next year.

Several teams, including senior administrators, financial sustainability working groups, faculty and staff representatives, Regents Professors and Distinguished Professors, and a multitude of others, are working quickly to address this shortfall. Every idea is being considered. As we collect more information over the next several months, the University of Arizona will adapt through new business models, reorganize and restructure for the most sustainable use of resources, and apply the long-term reductions that may be necessary to address the financial aftermath of COVID-19.

Strategic restructuring, competitive sourcing and traditional layoffs may be necessary in the future to ensure the long-term financial stability of the University, but a comprehensive layoff is not the right approach for our immediate response. Instead, we have focused on eliminating expenses that do not affect employment and that have limited impact on employee time or salaries while we address immediate cash flow needs of around $40 million per pay period throughout an extended period with modest revenue.

  *   We have put a halt to approved building projects for savings of $7 million.
  *   We have halted FY20 strategic plan funding for savings of $22 million.
  *   We have instituted a hiring pause and delayed plans for merit increases to save another $26 million.
  *   In March, senior vice presidents and I implemented immediate pay cuts for ourselves in recognition that at least that much would be required.

While significant, those savings are not enough, and an appropriate furlough (unpaid time away from work) and pay reduction program is required. With all this in mind, I have proposed to the Arizona Board of Regents a comprehensive program that includes staff and faculty in a graduated scale through FY 2020 & 2021:

  *   For those within the salary bands up to $44,449 a year, a furlough of 13 days to be taken over time
  *   For those within the salary bands of $44,500 to $75,000 a year, a furlough of 26 days to be taken over time
  *   For those within the salary bands of $75,001 to $150,000 a year, a furlough of 39 days to be taken over time
  *   For those within the salary bands of $150,001 to $199,999 a year, a straight salary reduction of 17%
  *   For those within the salary bands of $200,000 or more a year, a salary reduction of 20%

With this plan, employees will retain their employment and health care benefits. We all will share in this as a team and we all will sacrifice as a team, but in a manner that respects your work, your contributions and your compensation and benefits, to the highest extent possible.

We will implement this furlough and pay reduction plan from May 11, 2020 through June 30, 2021. It is projected that this program will generate approximately $93 million in savings to the institution. We will adapt if conditions change dramatically or we realize significant unexpected new sources of revenue, restructuring savings or expense reductions. As significant as this plan is, it will cover less than 40% of our projected shortfall through June 30, 2021, even though salaries and benefits comprise more than 60% of our spending.

I know you must have many questions about how this will affect you and your immediate colleagues, and I truly regret that this will add to an already stressful situation. The University has a complex structure with many different employment conditions to address, so I ask for your patience as we develop the implementation plans. More details will be shared as soon as possible, including a comprehensive FAQ online resource. Please visit the FY 2020 & 2021 Furlough & Pay Reduction Program website<http://click.comms.arizona.edu/?qs=abd2c6580c446441c32ef7de0dee79a1ef10902d48abbb7c86a1d3968582d497bf6157aecc5e46220f292f1ee9c2b4d2e9ddb0c6f5e04d96> for the most up-to-date information.

There is much more for us to do, and we will all be working together to guide our University out of this crisis. I am confident we will weather this storm, and I am truly grateful for all of you and your dedication to our students and one another.

Please stay safe, and, as always, Bear Down.

Robert C. Robbins, M.D.

President
The University of Arizona

Our mailing address is:
University of Arizona
PO Box 210066
Tucson, AZ 85721
US

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