CNMI Gov. Torres: Furloughing has always been our last option
With the furlough of many government workers set to take effect next week, Gov. Ralph DLG Torres is providing hope to the workers, saying that when the economy gets better, the furloughed employees would be the first employees to be offered back positions in the government.
With the economic catastrophe the CNMI is facing and with tourism shutdown on the islands, the Torres administration had some very tough decisions made, which included letting go of some of its workforce.
To cut the overall government personnel cost by 50%, the administration made the difficult decision and looked into terminating some excepted service employees, and the furlough of some civil service employees for a one-year period.
Torres, however, made it clear that “furloughing has always been our last option,” adding that they have done austerity, and reduced hours so every employee can maintain their job, but the COVID-19 pandemic made that decision necessary.
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