Correction: The Greyhound originally attributed this article, pulled from the UWIRE news service to which we subscribe, to the wrong author. Aimee Lockhardt is the correct author. We regret, and apologize for, the error.
**** On April 15, an email was sent out to the 41 work-study students employed at University of New Hampshire Audiovisual Services. The message was not one of well wishes for academic studies or updates on new technologies.
Instead, Dan DeVaughn, equipment room supervisor, wrote, "If you decide to work for Audiovisual Services next fall, you will all take a pay cut."
The pay cuts come in part because of the recession and its effect on the university. UNH has been making many cuts across departments, and Audiovisual Services is no exception. The department was not given an increase for labor budget funds and, with the increase in technological needs at the school, cutting the student hourly rate was the one way to save money.
Having worked for Audiovisual Services three years now, junior Ryan Peters said his initial reaction was, "That's not cool."
But, Ryan said he would willingly take a pay cut any day over other options.
"It's either less pay or firing people," he said. "I'd rather take a hit so more people can work."
Other employees did not look at the pay cut as optimistically.
Sophomore Shane McGray has been working in the department since he was a freshman and said that he was disappointed when he heard about the pay cuts. "My original pay was $8 an hour," he said. "I got a raise to $8.50 and another raise to $8.75 for completing a driving course. My rewards have been effectively erased."
The average wages for students who work for Audiovisual Services as a Delivery Technician is currently around $8.50 while a new employee is paid $8.25, said DeVaughn. But now a Delivery Technician will receive $8 and a new employee could receive as low as $7.50.
Audiovisual Services is not the only department facing troubles.
The student campus service officers, who work with the UNH Police Department, had their hours cut and were told their assistance was no longer required. Chief Deputy Paul Dean said this was mainly because the budget was becoming tight for the remaining three months of the semester.
"We choose to simply meet the needs by using full-time staff and regular hourly staff as needed," he said.
Dean wanted to emphasize that this cut was not a firing.
"If we have a surge in service needs, they will be called and asked to work," he said. "Once we review our campus needs for the fall, they will be contacted in August like we do every year."
On April 3, President Mark Huddleston issued a press release on the budget stating his intentions to cut money from many departments to help the university save money.
David Proulx, assistant vice president of financial planning and budgeting, said that because the costs for running the university have risen to higher levels than actual revenues, a structural deficit has been created. On top of this, Proulx said, there have been declines in state funding, net tuition revenues, research funding, and gift and endowment funds, which has caused the structural deficits for the budget for 2010 and 2011 to worsen.
As a way to deal with the deficits, the department is reducing hourly labour and its rates. This affects students with work-study because part of a department's budget goes toward helping to pay students. Work-study is made up of part federal funding and part institutional. By law, a student's wages are to be made up of 25 percent institutional dollars and 75 percent federal.
Susan Allen, director of Financial Aid, said that UNH has instead chosen to pay 40 percent of the wages and only 60 percent of federal dollars in order to allow more students work-study.
"If your wage was eight dollars and hour," Allen explained, "then the department pays three dollars and the remaining five is paid for out of the federal work-study pool that UNH receives."
Over the last four years working for Audiovisual Services, DeVaughn said he has noticed an increase in the demand for installed and delivered equipment. Four years ago, there were around 55 rooms on campus with installed technology compared to 90 today. Two years ago 4,968 deliveries were made. Last year that number rose 12 percent to 6,321.
DeVaughn said he has also noticed an increase of 120 percent in request for tutorials from professors.
"When a professor requests a tutorial, it means they are unfamiliar with the room technology, but would like to use it for their class," he explained. "With that increase of room use, we have seen an increase of requests for help during classes."
The most common increase in technology has been for laptop computers and portable video projects, DeVaughn said, which are most commonly used for PowerPoint presentations during class.
There have been no reports of DeVaughn's staff wanting to find a new job. Out of the students interviewed, only one said he might look for a new job.
"I like my job at [Audiovisual Services]," said McGray, who is uncertain whether he'll return in the fall. "But I need the money. I'm grateful to Dan for helping us find other jobs if we choose."
Alexander Azuma is a senior and said he does not plan on leaving his job despite the pay cuts.
"Even if I did want a higher paying job, I wouldn't take one because we all have a fun time working for Dan and none of us ever have problems," Azuma said. "When I first started working here I didn't know too much about all this technology and now I can help out my professors or friends with setting up their computers."
Sophomore Carol Anderson, who started working for Audiovisual Services in the fall, said that she will continue to work for the department next year.
"I do have faith that it is only temporary," she said, "And that the school would not do this unless they thought it was 100 percent necessary."
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