Working overtime

EDITOR's NOTE: This article originally published in The Advocate on Oct. 5, 2011. To view original post, visit AccentAdvocate.com.

John Christensen committed the day he was hired full time at Contra Costa College to memory.

"It was Aug. 22, 1988," the former employment development specialist said.

More importantly, however, Christensen remembers the day his 22-year career at CCC ended.

Effective June 30, district Director of Communications Tim Leong said 68 positions across the district, including its office in Martinez and its three campuses, were eliminated or reduced, resulting in employees taking retirement incentives, being laid off or relocated to another campus within the district to close a districtwide $21.3 million budget gap this year.

"We're trying to run this organization in a fiscally prudent manner," he said.

When Christensen, who took a similar job opening at Diablo Valley College, returned to CCC on Thursday for the unveiling of former night and weekend supervisor Martin Padilla's memorial bust on campus, he peeked into where he worked in the Student Services Center.

"I went back to my old office and the Transfer Center was basically dismantled," he said. "It looks like a study area now."

The college administration cut hours to the Transfer/Career Center among other student services and staffing positions to make up a $3 million shortage for the year.

State allocations continue to drop during the global economic recession, but further cuts to the college's operating budget forced the elimination of nine positions and the reduction of another seven at CCC.

Christensen said the jobs in the SSC were reduced to essential services: Admissions and Records, counseling, financial aid, Disabled Students Programs and Services and EOPS.

"Transfer was eliminated and absorbed by counseling," he said.

The responsibilities of the employees impacted by the cuts were passed off to other departments on campus, regardless of similarities or experience solving those issues.

Printing and copying is now done within each academic division or in the Bookstore with the elimination of the reprographics department, an automated recording replaced the switchboard operator to direct the college's incoming calls and President McKinley Williams, who is retiring at the end of December, added Foundation director to his list of responsibilities as head of the college.

"Everybody is doing more than one thing," Williams said. "We're looking at being efficient any way, every place we can. It's not business as usual."

Another department picking up the slack left from the district shake up is the custodial staff sorting and delivering mail.

The three day-shift custodians bear the load of getting mail to five locations on campus. This change has people waiting longer for their mail since Sheri Hintz transferred to DVC's San Ramon Center in the summer.

"I don't know how, but some of my mail is being delivered to the Business Office (in the Applied Arts Building)," Liberal Arts Division secretary Arceli Juarez said in her office on the bottom floor of the Liberal Arts Building.

"Before (Hintz left) we didn't have to worry about it being delivered to the right person," she said.

Custodial services Manager Darlene Poe said all the mail that arrives gets delivered.

"I give them what I get," she said. "We do what we have to do and students are our first priority."

Cuts impacted her department as well, which is down from 17 to 13.

Custodian Jeryl Landers said he and his team do what they can to keep the college running like when Hintz was here, but additional responsibilities means reduced freedoms.

"Sheri could go off campus and pick up mail," he said. "That's the No. 1 issue. We can't go. If somebody throws up (in a classroom), a toilet overflows or there's an event, we can't leave campus because of our responsibilities on campus."

But, Landers said, the custodians are fixing the problems with the delivery system.

"Rain, sleet, snow or toilets," he said.

Juarez said the extra work and stress put on the custodians is shared across the campus.

"With all the cuts, the custodians are trying to do their best, but are still mixing up the mail," she said. "People have more work to do and less time."