With 16 years of experience in the Howard County government, Jonathan K. Hall never expected the news he got yesterday. He was one of 40 people to lose their jobs in the budget crunch, and he fears it may cost him his home.
"I never envisioned this happening because I thought my job was needed," said Mr. Hall, 46, an engineer in the Department of Public Works. "I set engineering fees on new subdivisions, and I bring money into the county."
His wife, DeGloria, has a job with the Social Security Administration, but even with her income Mr. Hall said they might not be able to keep up payments on their Columbia home unless he found work quickly.
"We live paycheck to paycheck, and we may have to sell our house because it will be difficult to make the mortgage payments on one paycheck," he lamented.
Stories like Mr. Hall's were the talk of Ellicott City yesterday after the workers were called in by their bosses, given the bad news and sent home.
The only good news was that the number of pink slips handed out was only a fifth of the 200 initially contemplated by County Executive Charles I. Ecker. The layoffs will save about $1.5 million, the equivalent of 3 cents on the property tax rate.
County officials said the layoffs were needed because the recession had cut revenues badly.
Without a tax increase -- which is expected -- the county will take in $26 million less next year than this year, they said.
"We have to reduce the budget's base because of the financial crisis," said Mr. Ecker, who said he planned no other layoffs now. "Unfortunately, a lot of good people had to be let go."
The laid-off employees, who had filled a mixture of blue-collar and middle-management jobs in the 1,725-member work force, will be paid through June 19 and can keep their health insurance until the end of September at current rates.
The county is offering them job counseling,resume writing and help in finding job interviews.
That was little consolation to employees such as George Lohrmann and Carl Weinberger.
For Mr. Lohrmann, a 42-year-old maintenance man who was hired last June, the layoff was the latest of a series of personal blows. He said the loss of his $21,000-a-year job "may force me to claim bankruptcy."
"I think it stinks," said Mr. Lohrmann, who has two children, aged 8 and 11, and is in the process of getting divorced.
