We now have a report on the number of UWM employees who opted to participate to date in the Voluntary Separation Incentive Program (VSIP). This post updates our earlier April report on this program. See here for further details and background on the program.

At UWM, a total of 232 employees were deemed eligible for the program. Of those 81 signed up (35% of those eligible). Ninety faculty were eligible; 13 signed up (14% of those eligible; ~1-2% of the total faculty). Of the remaining employees (academic staff; classified staff and limited appointments), 143 were eligible and 68 signed up (48% of those eligible).

From the data in our April survey of the faculty, it was clear that there weren’t going to be a lot of takers among the faculty. Among the other campuses that have used the program, Eau Claire reported that 115 signed up; 21 were faculty (21% of those eligible on the faculty). It appears the program was less popular both in absolute numbers and as a proportion of employees in the much larger UWM labor force.

Caveat: There’s a second stage when someone can opt out, so these numbers could decline further.