The City of Miramar no longer plans to furlough city employees

Full-time employees were originally going to be furloughed eight hours per week for the rest of the year

The COVID-19 pandemic has provided a barrier for economic growth within the U.S. and the small cities are hit the hardest.

The City of Miramar announced plans to explore other options to deal with the city’s impending financial struggles.

“Please be advised that upon further discussion with staff, union representatives, Mayor Messam, Commissioner Colbourne, and the public I am exploring other alternatives outside of implementing furloughs,” said City Manager Vernon Hargray in the city’s press release.

Demonstrations broke out at city hall after a memo, sent out by Hargray, stated that all full-time city employees would be getting an initial furlough of eight hours per week starting June 11 to December 9.

However, City Spokesperson Shaun Gayle, clarified in a press release that the furloughs would actually take place until September 30, which is the end of the fiscal year.

The furloughs were in response to the city opting to avoid a $23 million deficit, and in doing so, save $3.8 million.

A decline in various tax revenues and fees for city services, made the furlough essential, according to the press release.

First responders were also going to be among the employees who were going to be affected by the furloughs. The layoffs were going to leave some areas of Miramar less protected causing outrage among members of the community.

The public outcry generated a petition against the furloughs, gathering more than 7,600 signatures.

Additional cost saving measures, such as freezing promotions, cuts to travel and training costs, and delaying or modifying construction projects were already being enacted prior to the attempted layoffs.

While the city looks for answers to keep the city financially afloat, the city will be using its reserve funds which totals $5.6 million.

According to the press release, the city could implement six other solutions besides the layoffs, such as freezing new hires and reducing operational costs.