Statement in Response to the 3/25 “Pause” on Personnel Decisions

OU-AAUP applauds President Nellis, Provost Sayrs, and Senior Vice President for Finance and Administration Shaffer for their decision to press “pause” on “personnel-related budget reductions.” As they rightly observe, the COVID-19 pandemic is “dramatically affecting the daily lives of our OHIO family,” and this move to protect jobs in uncertain times is a perfect demonstration of what true Bobcat solidarity–with our employees, our students, and our region–looks like.

We appreciate the security that this statement provides to Ohio University employees, especially the 315 Instructional Faculty members whose jobs have been on the chopping block this year. However, the financial challenges facing the university remain. President Nellis’s administration has correctly ascertained that laying off Instructional Faculty during a pandemic would be particularly callous. But even after we have made it through this crisis together, such layoffs would still compromise OHIO’s core mission of education and social mobility. Instructional Faculty are critical to this mission: they teach hundreds of classes and tens of thousands of students every semester, all for the lowest pay. They are not responsible for what President Nellis has referred to as “an imbalance in our operational spending.”

When this pandemic has passed and President Nellis’s administration once again considers possible budget cuts, we ask that they first right-size OHIO’s administration, administrative salaries, and non-academic units before considering layoffs of the high-value and low-cost Instructional Faculty who are at the front line of Ohio University’s mission.

As President Nelis has said, “We can and will be focused on answering the call of our state, our nation, and our world — to support our students, create new knowledge, and serve our communities.” Indeed, that is the mission of Ohio University. Therefore, OU-AAUP respectfully continues its call to faculty, Classified Workers, Custodial Staff, students, alumni, community members, and Ohio taxpayers: write to President Nellis and the Board of Trustees. Thank them for putting a “pause” on personnel cuts during this pandemic; let them know how much you care about the proper functioning of this beloved public institution; and let them know that cuts to Instructional Faculty would compromise the mission of Ohio University.