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The Timberland Regional Library (TRL) on Wednesday unveiled administrative salary cuts and staff furloughs that are estimated to save the five-county library system roughly $220,000 over the next six months.
The cost savings are intended to temporarily stabilize TRL’s budget as administrators and the Board of Trustees look for long-term solutions to address its $3.8 million shortfall.
The TRL Board of Trustees approved the furloughs and administrative restructuring plan during its regular meeting on Wednesday, June 25.
The furloughs affect 14 non-union-represented TRL Administrative Service Center employees, requiring them to work two fewer days per month for four months.
“If we stay within those parameters, then it does not trigger unemployment or a loss of benefits like health insurance,” said TRL HR Administrator Kandy Seldin.
The affected positions include the interim executive director, interim deputy director, public information officer and public records officer, in addition to three HR staff and seven IT staff.
Additionally, the safety and security officer has voluntarily decreased their FTE for the next four months, according to Interim Executive Director Andrea Heisel.
The furlough savings are estimated to save TRL $13,635 each month, for a four-month total of $54,542.
The bulk of the expected savings come from an administrative restructuring that Heisel embarked upon during her first month on the job.
The administrative restructuring officially goes into effect in July, after TRL pays former Executive Director Cheryl Heywood her last paycheck on June 30.
The TRL Board of Trustees accepted Heywood’s resignation on March 25. While she was released from her duties that same day, the board agreed to continue paying her for 90 days.
The restructuring brings more people to the table, dividing up oversight of seven departments — including four previously overseen by Brenda Lane — to 10 administrators.
Lane left employment with TRL on June 2 after a string of Microsoft Teams messages between her and Finance Administrator Paige Preston became public.
In those messages, Lane and Preston are documented disparaging the TRL Board of Trustees, staff and patrons.
Preston tendered her resignation, effective June 15, before the messages became public.
The new administrative positions are all filled by current TRL employees within the departments they are tasked with overseeing, according to Heisel.
Most of the new administrators are seeing either a pay reduction or no change to their current pay.
Heisel is taking a salary cut herself, with her interim executive director salary set at $169,855, down from the $196,908 she made as library services director/deputy director.
Her old role’s salary, retitled as interim deputy director, is also being cut down to $138,108.
Another administrative position receiving a pay cut is the finance administrator, which is being cut from $142,251 to $130,179. TRL is still working to fill that position following Preston’s resignation.
Several positions are being fully restructured to create cost savings.
The position of operations administrator is being reduced to facilities supervisor, with a salary decrease from $196,908 to $114,661.
The executive administrator’s job, which had a salary of $130,179, also disappears. That position becomes the public records officer, which has a salary of $115,661.
The Patron Experience Advisor is also moving into a vacant West Grays Harbor Regional Manager position, decreasing their salary from $130,830 to $96,159.
Two administrative positions receive a pay increase under the new structure: The communications and marketing coordinator, whose salary increases from $100,020 to $102,763 due to the addition of supervisory duties; and the ops admin project coordinator, whose salary increases from $109,022 to $112,292.
Five positions — two IT administrators, the collection services administrator, special projects coordinator and public information officer/clerk of the board — are keeping their same salaries.
The fleet, facilities and Anywhere Library departments are not affected by the administration restructuring.
The TRL Board of Trustees applauded Heisel on Wednesday for finding a way to cut payroll costs without laying off staff.
“We really appreciate that in terms of the really vigorous public input earlier this year,” said Board of Trustees President Brian Mittge.
TRL’s initial cost savings plan included 61 involuntary layoffs, 80% of which were rescinded following public backlash and threatened legal action from the library workers union AFSCME Local 3758.
The layoff plan was publicly criticized for placing the brunt of cuts on frontline staff, who make on average $25,000 to $70,000 a year, and leaving over a dozen six-figure administrative salaries untouched.
Of the new furlough plan and administrative restructuring, Mittge said, “I appreciate the sacrifices and finding people to take home less pay. This helps. This helps measurably for our finances, and also shows the public that we're putting our money where our mouth is.”
TRL still intends to run a levy lid lift proposal within the next year to stabilize its budget and prevent further layoffs.
The Board of Trustees has until August to decide whether or not to run a proposal on the November 2026 midterm ballot.
