A Special Message from the President

The recent public meeting at Moody Gardens Convention Center of the UT System Task Force on UTMB Clinical Operations was a very important event, providing members of the university and Galveston communities with an opportunity to express their views about our future and setting the stage for the critical decision-making process to come. Given the interest and allegiance apparent that day, I am ever more confident that UTMB’s future is secure.  I am also extremely proud of our faculty, students and staff who participated in the meeting. I hope everyone at UTMB will continue to follow the process and I promise to keep you informed as discussions among UTMB, the Board of Regents, the UT System and the Texas Legislature unfold.

I have promised to keep you informed about the ongoing progress with our recovery efforts following Hurricane Ike. One persistent question concerns rumors that continue to circulate about a second reduction in force.  As I stated during the last Town Hall meeting, no additional reduction in force is planned. Our recovery is proceeding well, and another workforce reduction would considerably lessen our ability to be successful with our education, research and patient care missions.  I hope you will join me in trying to dispel this rumor.

A number of other questions relate to the impact of our financial circumstances on established compensation practices and other employee programs. Human Resources recently developed an FAQ list that provides information about questions such as:

• Will there be merit increases and staff incentive plan payouts in this fiscal year?
• Will there be salary adjustments for those who have taken on additional responsibilities since Hurricane Ike and the subsequent workforce reduction?
• Will eligible staff members be able to take disaster compensation time during this time of lean staffing before those accruals expire?

I want to assure you that rewarding and retaining our people remain high priorities. We will do everything we can as quickly as possible to restore our compensation and benefits plans to their pre-storm status. We plan to make merit increases available to all eligible faculty and staff on a common date, effective Sept. 1, 2009. (The only exceptions will be for those whose salaries are externally funded, such as Correctional Managed Care and grant-funded personnel.) Our plan is to build merit increases into the budget process for the 2010 fiscal year. 

Additionally, employees who are promoted into critical vacancies during this fiscal year will receive salary increases based on established compensation guidelines, and we will continue to honor salary increases that are part of approved career ladders that require employees to demonstrate a new skill level, competencies or certifications.

I encourage you to review the FAQs and to talk with your supervisor if you have additional questions or concerns. Between our recovery efforts and the high-level discussions taking place about our future, the need for timely communication is greater than ever. I promise to keep you informed, and I hope to see you at the next Town Hall meeting (Thursday, March 26, at noon) and at one or more of the upcoming “Mondays in March” sessions. Thank you for everything you are doing to ensure a bright future for UTMB.

Dr. David L. Callender
President