Employees shuffled around to save money

MONCKS CORNER — With hiring freezes and budget cutbacks, counties are shuffling workers to keep from cutting services or laying off people.

For example, Berkeley County moved several workers from the permitting department, where business is slack with the construction slowdown, to Veterans Affairs, where the workload has doubled because of layoffs that are fueling requests for education and retraining.

The county calls it a workload readjustment program. It keeps the permitting department from laying off workers who would need to be replaced as the economy recovers and the demand for building permits increases, Deputy Supervisor Chip Boling said in an announcement last week. It also saves the Veterans Affairs Office the expense of having to hire a temporary employee, he said.

Seven workers have been moved from departments where work is slow to departments with heavier workloads since February, Human Resources Director Leonitta Turner said in the announcement. Their pay rates remained the same.

Dorchester and Charleston counties have been making similar moves, according to officials.

For instance, Dorchester County moved several building inspectors to environmental enforcement, Administrator Jason Ward said.

Charleston County moved some workers whose workload has slowed to help with the budget, Communications Officer Jennie Davis said.

The moves come as county officials work to draft next year's budgets amid declining revenues and more expected cutbacks from the state.

Reach Dave Munday at 937-5553 or dmunday@postandcourier.com.