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University of Iowa reviewing 362 early retirement applications

Mar. 9, 2015 5:34 pm
About a quarter of the 1,400-some University of Iowa employees eligible for an early retirement incentive program applied by the Friday deadline, according to UI officials.
Department heads must approve or deny the 362 applications by the end of March. The provost and vice president of human resources must make final decisions by mid-April.
Employees approved to retire early will have 52 days to accept or reject the early retirement offer. All employees chosen for the program must retire no later than June 30, according to Board of Regents documents.
The early retirement incentive, expected to save at least $21 million over the five-year program's period, was offered to employees last month as part of the university's efforts to become more efficient. The Board of Regents last year launched a system-wide efficiency review of its three public universities, and a consultant hired to conduct the review identified operational changes expected to save tens of millions and eliminate 250-some jobs across the UI, Iowa State University, and University of Northern Iowa campuses.
UI President Sally Mason has said she hopes to accomplish any job cuts through attrition, not layoffs, and the early retirement program could help make that happen.
To be eligible for the program, employees must be at least 57 years old with at least 10 years of continuous, benefit-eligible employment. UI Health Care employees and those covered by the local Service Employees International Union collective bargaining agreement are not eligible.
The program's benefits include payment of accrued vacation, accrued sick leave not exceeding $2,000, the standard share of health and dental coverage for five years, and the employer's and employee's retirement contributions for three years, followed by two years of just the employer's contribution.
UI administrators will approve only those early retirements that benefit the university, weighing cost-saving potential, talent retention, workforce planning, and unintended consequences in deciding who to approve, Vice President for Human Resources Sue Buckley told UI staff earlier this year.
This is the third time UI has offered early retirement incentives in recent years. Programs in 2009 and 2010 netted 423 participants and about $78 million in savings.
The retirement program is just one aspect of the university's efforts to implement recommendations from the Board of Regents' 'Transparent Inclusive Efficiency Review.' The board has approved plans to streamline and improve operations on all three of its public campuses, including in the areas of human resources, finance, and information technology, and more academic-related efficiencies are expected.
On the UI campus, officials have created an efficiency review leadership team and advisory board, and they've started disseminating staff surveys and scheduling workshops aimed at effecting change. Human resources and finance staff, for example, received an 'activity-based analysis survey' last week that asked questions about how much time they spend on certain tasks.
'We don't anticipate any job losses as a result of this assessment, although there eventually could be labor savings through normal attrition or retirements,' Executive Vice President and Provost Barry Butler said in a statement.
He said the early retirement program could provide some 'opportunities' but stressed administrators don't expect 'any reductions in services provided to departments.'
'And there are no plans to physically relocate staff involved in this work to a central location,' he said. 'The goal is better, more efficient service to departments.'
Information technology have said they're working with outside consulting firm Chazey Partners on a 12-week contract to provide advice and assistance. Specifically, Chazey is helping develop metrics to track savings and efficiencies; validate opportunity and savings estimates; advise on the structure and governance of project implementation; and develop a service model.
UI information technology representatives also have been working with ISU and UNI on possible collaborations, including data centers, application portfolios, help desk, purchasing, informatics, technology support for classrooms, and collaborative spaces.
University of Iowa president Sally Mason talks to people before the beginning of a Board of Regents meeting at the Iowa Memorial Union in Iowa City on Tuesday, January 20, 2015. The Board of Regents voted to accept Sally Mason's resignation and will begin looking for a replacement. (Stephen Mally/The Gazette)