Bad time for Cal State furloughs

To help close a big funding gap, employees at all 23 California State University campuses must take two unpaid days off every month, many starting tomorrow. The president of one Southland campus told KPCC’s Adolfo Guzman-Lopez that this couldn’t happen at a worse time.

Adolfo Guzman-Lopez: The furloughs will turn Cal State Dominguez Hills into Cal State Ghost Town. Thirteen-hundred employees, more than half of them faculty, won’t be at work. Police and student housing staff will be on the job.

Classes start in a little more than a week, says campus president Mildred Garcia. She’s heard plenty of complaints from students.

Mildred Garcia: The students can’t register, they can’t go to financial aid, they can’t go see a counselor, they can’t see an adviser. We pride ourselves in serving students in the South Bay, in being customer-friendly to them, and unfortunately we will not be here to serve many students.

Guzman-Lopez: Garcia doesn’t plan to take a spa day. She’ll be delivering a commencement speech at Long Beach City College and doing other university-related work. After the semester begins, Dominguez Hills employees will stagger furlough days on Fridays and Mondays to ease the burden on students.