The U-of-M’s clerical workers’ union plans their own public hearing outside later this morning because there won’t be one at the Board of Regents meeting on the University budget. U-of-M officials say an on-line “feedback forum” will let more people participate, but Cherrene Horazuk with AFSCME Local 3800 contends it doesn’t compare to a public hearing. She says that’s “the one opportunity that people have each year to… look the Regents in the eye, look the administration in the eye and say, this is what you should be spending your money on.” The legislature didn’t appropriate as much money as the U-of-M wanted, and Horazuk says union members are concerned about front-line job cuts and tuition increases for students.
Horazuk says there’s a number of other ways the U can tighten its belt: “A lot of administrative bloat, high-level administrators who are making really large salaries. And if they’re looking at making cuts, they should start looking at the top, as opposed to at the bottom, which is where they usually look.”