125 Atlanta city employees to lose jobs | ajc.com - Sent Using Google Toolbar

125 Atlanta city employees to lose jobs | ajc.com

125 Atlanta city employees to lose jobs
Franklin administration's first phase of employment reduction to rid nearly 800 posts begins

By ERIC STIRGUS
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 05/01/08

Atlanta officials plan to lay off about 125 city workers Thursday afternoon as part of Mayor Shirley Franklin's plan to cope with a projected $140 million budget shortfall by cutting staff and raising taxes.

Union leaders, already upset about the job cuts, said they are angry that city officials plan to have police officers at the termination meetings.

Atlanta fiscal crisis: Franklin: Layoffs, property tax increase needed | 'Average folks' to fund sewer fixes if feds don't Union wants to 'know what's going on' with city layoffs | Police, fire departments say budget cuts will hurt service Deepening crisis, Atlanta finds 4,000 bills to pay Atlanta council tightening reins on finances? | Atlanta officials failed to heed budget advice $8.1 million in budget cuts feared for Atlanta parks department Audit: Atlanta miscalculated revenues, causing $65M deficit

"It's like a sore and you are poking at the sore," said Gina Pagnotta, a 9-year Public Works employee who is president of the 357-employee Professional Association of City Employees.

"How ugly can you get?"

City Council members grilled Franklin and her staff about the layoff plans during a meeting Thursday morning. Thursday's cuts are the first wave of 441 layoffs and elimination of 347 vacant positions.

Council members also asked the mayor if she considered other options to her proposed $40 million property tax increase. Franklin said the other option was to eliminate nearly 350 police and fire department positions, a decision the mayor said she could not make.

"This is a very tough decision," Franklin told reporters about the proposed property tax hike and layoffs. "We certainly want to see our families strong. We want to see them economically strong and we will do everything we can with outplacement services."

Franklin said she needs to raise $40 million through property taxes to balance the budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1. She could not say how much the increase will cost homeowners and business owners because said her staff is still waiting on information from Fulton County tax appraisers.

The council is scheduled to vote on the property tax increase and Franklin's budget on June 2