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	Catholic Church Lays off 37 in Milwaukee Chicago Sun-Times April 11, 2008 http://www.suntimes.com/news/metro/890639,arch041108.article MILWAUKEE — The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milwaukee announced Friday it will lay off nearly a fifth of its workers early next month to try to cut costs. Thirty-seven of the approximately 150 positions reporting to the archdiocese will be eliminated, although 15 new jobs are being created as part of a streamlining of operations, diocese spokeswoman Kathleen Hohl said. The changes are part of an effort to close a $3 million budget gap for this fiscal year and balance the books for the one beginning in July, Hohl said. The shortfall stems from costs associated with the priest sexual abuse crisis as well as such things as increasing health care costs, she said. "We are frustrated that money is tight and we have to make these cuts," Milwaukee Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan said in an e-mail this week to more than 4,300 central office, parish and school staffers and volunteers. "This is heightened because we know it is caused largely by the financial impact from the actions of those priests who sexually abused minors." The job cuts, first reported by The Business Journal of Milwaukee, are expected to save a little more than $1 million, said Jerry Topczewski, Dolan's chief of staff. Eight of the 37 positions being eliminated were already vacant, while four of the workers whose jobs are being cut are being moved to new ones, Topczewski said. "A new way is being created for services and ministries to be provided," he said. "No ministry in the church ever gets eliminated." Some of the archdiocesan employees affected by the cuts are priests, and they will move to parish or other institutional work within the church, Topczewski said. In some cases, the archdiocese will have volunteers from parishes and schools who have expertise in various areas do work previously handled by employees, Topczewski said. "All of us are called as disciples," he said. Archdiocesan commissions would be created to coordinate such efforts, he said. Among other things, the archdiocese is still paying off its portion of a nearly $17 million 2006 settlement of sexual abuse lawsuits in California involving former Milwaukee priests. "Every day we are paying interest on that," Hohl said.
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