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SALT LAKE CITY --Government is shrinking in Utah, and not because of belief in smaller government.
In 18 months, the state has lost more than 2,000 state workers, mostly through attrition and early retirement.
Jeff Herring, executive director of the Department of Human Resource Management, says fewer than 100 of those losses represent layoffs. He says attrition is one way the state is doing more with less.
I think everyone is being asked to (sacrifice). I have that discussion, and it's not just in government; it's everywhere. It's been a tough recession.
–Jeff Herring
"We always are trying to manage efficiently," Herring says, "but at the same time provide the citizens the services that they need."
Teachers are not represented in that 2,000 figure because they are both hired and paid at the district level.
Looking at all executive branch departments, higher education and the courts, the state work force has shrunk 6.8 percent since January 2009. That's higher than the 3.5 percent reduction in the state's work force as a whole.
Herring says many workers chose to retire early or go into the private sector again. Rather than fill their positions, the state eliminated them to save money.
"Pretty much it was, 'You should make this change. This is the direction it's going,"' said Krissie Summerhays, president of the newly formed Independent Support Coordinators Association. "Or they could wait until the privatization process was completed, and they'd most likely get laid off at that time."
The Department of Human Services has seen some of the largest cuts, with 515 positions eliminated since January 2009, a reduction of nearly 14 percent. This has required reorganization of many of its functions.
At the Division of Services for People with Disabilities, 146 of the 274 employee positions have been eliminated, including more than 120 case managers.
"Where it's left us is without benefits and without health insurance," said Pamela Smith, one of the former state workers who started her own business, Superior Support Services.
House Speaker David Clark, R-Santa Clara, said the cost cutting has been healthy for the state, focusing departments on their core responsibilities and finding ways to be more efficient.
Clark, who is a banker, said he thinks the state economy has bottomed out, but the recovery is in question. What is certain is continued population growth. "So," he said, "we're going to have to do more with the same amount."
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Story compiled with contributions from Becky Bruce and The Associated Press.
