OSHKOSH, WI (WTAQ) - UW-Oshkosh has become at least the third of the 26 university campuses to offer voluntary retirement buyouts for long-serving employees.
The Eau Claire and Superior campuses announced early retirement packages earlier, as the university deals with a huge expected cut in its state funding.
At Oshkosh, officials say faculty and staffers 60 and older with at least 25 years of state service are eligible for one-time buyouts of 50 percent of their base salaries.
Governor Scott Walker has proposed a $300 million reduction over the next two years -- but even some of the governor's fellow Republicans in the Legislature say they'd favor a smaller cut.
Oshkosh chancellor Andrew Leavitt told employees the school's goal is to keep involuntary separations to a minimum. It expects about 100 employees to be eligible for buyouts, and its workforce reduction goal is around 80 staffers within a three-year period.
(Story courtesy of Wheeler News Service)