MU School of Medicine requiring pay cuts, furloughs as COVID-19 hits finances

EDITOR'S NOTE: The cuts and furloughs apply only to School of Medicine employees.

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The University of Missouri School of Medicine will require faculty and staff to take pay cuts or furloughs to help make up for revenue lost during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The school announced the cost saving measures Thursday in a news release. In an email to faculty and staff, MU School of Medicine Dean Steven Zweig said faculty will take a 10 percent pay cut May 1 through July 31. Staff will take a 10 percent pay cut over three months or a one-week furlough, depending on department needs, Zweig wrote.

“Hundreds of inpatient beds have been unoccupied, elective surgeries have been cancelled, and clinic visits reduced significantly," MU Health CEO Jonathan Curtright said. "We are forced to make some difficult decisions to ensure our long-term financial stability and growth moving forward.”

The medical school outlined other cost-cutting measures it has taken, including cutting leadership pay by 10 percent, suspending travel, halting non-essential spending and canceling more than 300 open positions.

More measures will be coming, Curtright said in the news release.

"We anticipate further impacts to our workforce, including pay reductions, furloughs and layoffs," Curtright said. "These decisions will be made thoughtfully and will be dependent on patient volumes and the changing needs of our health system as we see this pandemic’s effects on our community in the months to come. We will continue to keep employee safety and high-quality patient care at the forefront of all of our decisions.”

The COVID-19 pandemic has continued to drag down the economy locally and nationwide. At least 453,189 state residents have filed for unemployment since March 21.