The hatchet came down at City Hall today as nine employees were given lay-off notices.
The lay-offs are part of a planned City of Prince George restructuring meant to achieve a drastic reduction in budget expenditures.
Along with the nine lay-offs, 15 vacant positions will not be filled, leading a total of 28 jobs cut if city council approves its proposed 2012 budget.
Mayor Shari Green and senior city administrators held a press conference today to address the impact of $1.68 million in personnel cuts planned by the city for the 2012 budget.
On Monday city council asked city administration to bring forward a budget based on a 3.12 per cent property tax increase. Council will formally debate the budget in a series of meetings starting on Feb. 15.
The city employes 567 full-time staff and 157 part-time staff. Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) local 1048 represents approximately 400 of those workers.
"We have concerns for our members," CUPE local 1048 president Janet Bigelow said. "I'm hoping that [the cuts] include all personnel, not just CUPE personnel - that it include exempt staff."
A spokesperson for CUPE local 399, which represents the city's outside workers could not be reached for comment as of press time.
City administration had previously reported to city council that a 5.13 per cent tax increase would be needed to maintain services at existing levels. According to a report presented to city council, nearly $2 million in operational spending will need to be cut to restrict the tax increase to 3.12 per cent.
While city revenue was anticipated to increase by $828,000 in 2012 due to new construction and increased city fees, the city is facing $3.9 million in additional costs.
A total of $2.48 million of that increase is due to rising wages for RCMP, CUPE staff, fire fighters and city managers.
Included in the new costs for the city is $350,000 for a core service review, which was a key plank in Green's election platform. City council approved the budget for the review earlier this month.
GREEN FLIP FLOPS ON JOB CUTS, TAX INCREASES
Prior to the election, Green pledged to find financial efficiencies at City Hall without cutting jobs. During the launch of her election platform on Oct. 20, Green said financial disciple would be her top priority if elected.
Green also pledged to bring a service-oriented approach to city services to better meet the needs of the business and investment community.
"For me job cuts is not something we want to consider," Green said. "[But] our ability to spend needs to be tied to our ability to pay. I think we're really at the end of tolerance for tax hikes."
