PERKINS TWP.

Less than two months after it furloughed 10 workers, Ohio Veterans Home says it has saved enough money to call seven of them back.

"We are calling back a number of our folks who were laid off, effective Monday," said Bob Day, director of human resources.

Working to contain a $633,000 budget cut, the agency in February laid off seven union employees and three non-union workers as part of a broad cost-cutting effort. The budget cut from the state is about $100,000 less than anticipated in February.

The workers were expected to be off until June 30, the end of the agency's fiscal year. But a greater-than-expected savings from the effort, including allowing workers to take voluntary time off without pay, helped OVH meet its goal.

"A number of programs we put in place here were more successful than anticipated," Day said. "Based on the success of those programs, we were able to call some individuals back."

It also reduced overtime and trimmed its resident therapy program from 106 workers to 74. The program, which was originally designed for 50-60 residents, pays them $3.50 an hour to work in the facility. Residents who continued to work with the program also had their hours cut.

By the end of the March 22 pay period, the agency had saved more than $72,000. Day said he won't have figures including the pay period that ended Friday for a couple of days.

Gary Chetwood, OVH director of public affairs, said everyone from the director to those in entry-level positions participated.

Workers were allowed to take time off in 10th-of-an-hour increments, but many took them a half hour or hour at a time, Day said.

Chetwood said in order to help save the jobs of their coworkers, some offered to take 40 hours off.

OVH Network Director Col. Christine M. Cook didn't approve requests for those wanting to take several hours off, according to Chetwood, saying patient care was not compromised and that Cook didn't want workers to make too big of a sacrifice.

"The people that wanted to do that, they could be single parents," Chetwood said. "You don't want them to put themselves in financial straits."

Neither Chetwood nor Day could say how many participated in the program, but Day said 3,459 hours have been cut.

The program will likely continue through the end of the fiscal year, Chetwood said.

Although the union workers have been called back, three non-union employees have not.

"We have yet to make a determination on the exempt employees," Day said. "That entails the realignment of duties for those particular positions. I don't believe we are going to make a decision until the first of July."

OVH has 678 residents and 727 beds. The home's 675 state employees earn an average of $16.60 per hour.

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