ASU’s athletic department will not be exempt from the newly implemented furloughs that were announced Jan. 28.

Because to the current economic situation, all athletic coaches and employees will have to take mandatory days off according to how they are paid, just like other university employees.

Administrators will be required to take 15 days off, hourly employees will take 10 days off, and the rest of faculty and staff will take 12 days of unpaid time off.

There are two options with the furloughs, both resulting in loss of pay.

Faculty, staff and coaches can choose to still come to work during their scheduled furlough, though they will not be paid for those days.

ASU is not the only university to implement furloughs for athletic
departments, though.

Universities like Iowa State, Clemson, University of Maryland, Utah State and even Harvard have began mandatory furlough programs in light of recent state budget cuts.

ASU spokesperson Terri Shafer said Sun Devil men’s basketball coach Herb Sendek will lose $13,600 from his annual base salary of $292,000 and football coach Dennis Erickson will lose $20,800 from his $450,000 salary.

Shafer said furloughs apply to everyone who works for the University, and that they were designed to affect everyone the same.

Shafer also said that although the athletic department is largely financially self-sufficient, through sponsors and ticket sales, the furloughs are about equality.

“I think everyone recognizes that we are in a difficult time right now,” Shafer said. “We wanted to make sure that the furloughs were fair and that no one was being excluded based on how their job category is funded.”

She said the main goal is to make sure that people don’t suffer.

“Faculty members are working out schedules so that their time off does not disrupt students, and athletic department employees are doing the same,” Shafer said. “The athletic department understands the importance of teams having to pull together when times are hard.”

From an economic standpoint, macroeconomics lecturer Matthew Croucher thinks it is fair to include the athletic department in the furlough program.

“The University is treating the state finance as an overall University-wide problem, and one way to look at the problem is to apply these furloughs to the entire University,” Croucher said. “Athletics and academics are in fact linked, and you can’t have one without the other.”

Croucher also added that no solution is perfect and that there will be bitter edges to any resolution.

“The University is facing a huge problem, and by doing these furloughs across the board, they are maintaining the quality of education,” Croucher said.

ASU men’s golf coach Randy Lein also agrees with the decision and has chosen the option of a pay cut instead of taking time off from coaching.

Lein said he will still attend practice during his scheduled furlough, although he will not be paid for those days.

“Times are tough right now and most of my peers are more than willing to give up some money to save the University,” Lein said. “We’re going to see that the athletes are still supported by trainers, coaches and teachers the same as they always have.”

Reach the reporter at allison.carlin@asu.edu.