College District May Offer Buyouts
The Ventura County Community College District Board of Trustees today will consider a proposal to pay secretaries, custodians and other non-teaching staff to retire early.
The “Golden Handshake,” as the plan is called, would credit classified employees with an extra two years of service so their pensions would be calculated at a higher rate, said Jerry Pauley, personnel officer for the college district.
About 55 employees at the district offices and Moorpark, Oxnard and Ventura colleges are eligible for early retirement, Pauley said. The district is one of the largest employers in the county, with about 900 full-time employees and 750 part-time workers on its payroll.
To be eligible for the plan, workers must be at least 50 years old and have accrued at least five years in the state Public Employee Retirement System.
The plan could save the district up to $600,000, Pauley said. College officials will try to avoid filling positions that have been vacated by the early retirees, he said.
“It’s going to be a way of saving money and reducing the work force,” Pauley said.
If approved, employees could retire between May 25 and Aug. 22. Workers will have until June 1 to consider the offer.
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