Citing a dramatic revenue drop following the closure of Metro’s visitor venues, Metro chief operating officer Marissa Madrigal says the regional government will have to cut its workforce by as much as 40 percent.
Additionally, all Metro departments will be required to implement targeted schedule reductions or furloughs, Madrigal said.
The cuts come as the world continues to grapple with the COVID-19 pandemic. Metro’s visitor venues were closed March 13 by order of Oregon Gov. Kate Brown, who banned the large gatherings to #flattenthecurve and preserve hospital capacity for critically ill Oregonians. As millions of Oregonians and visitors to our venues know, large gatherings are the very reason for existence of Portland’5 Centers for the Arts, the Oregon Convention Center and the Portland Expo Center. The Oregon Zoo is also closed because of the Governor’s order to minimize unnecessary travel and support social distancing.
Much of Metro’s budget comes on a fee-for-service basis, such as charges for rentals at the Oregon Convention Center or tickets to events at the Keller Auditorium. Nearly half of Metro’s budget comes from charges for services rendered.
The closure of Metro’s visitor venues is prompting $7.2 million in monthly losses from Metro’s 2020 budget. Another $2.9 million in monthly losses comes from Metro’s solid waste fund, which is funded by a tax on garbage in the Portland region. With retail businesses shuttered during the pandemic, less garbage is moving its way through Metro’s system.
While Metro’s venues and the Oregon Zoo are most directly affected by the $11 million monthly revenue hit, Metro’s solid waste and general funds have been impacted as well. The Oregon Zoo, for example, must keep caring for animals, even if it doesn’t have visitors. And revenue from the visitor venues helped to pay for some Metro operational services, like finance and accounting, human resources, information technology and digital security.
“For those employees impacted by layoffs, we are extending healthcare benefits for an additional three months beyond separation. We are in touch with the State to help make sure you experience as small a gap as possible when you file for unemployment,” Madrigal wrote in an email to staff. “We are poring over the federal stimulus plan so that we can make sure you know what you are entitled to, including enhanced unemployment benefits. We have reached out to other governments and companies that are still hiring and working to share those job opportunities with you. You are not alone in this.”
To help with the agency-wide cuts, Madrigal is taking a number of measures to reduce expenditures including reducing schedules for high income earners across the agency and asking employees to consider voluntary lay-offs and schedule reductions.
“My goal is to preserve the amazing venues, innovative programs, and ground-breaking initiatives that Metro – that each of you – has created,” Madrigal wrote. “And when we’ve gotten past the worst of this pandemic, when the economy rebounds, you have my word that I will do everything in my power to bring our most valuable assets, our employees, back to Metro as quickly as I can.”