Oberlin College students protested on campus this week to voice opposition to an administration plan to outsource the jobs of more than 100 dining and custodial employees as a cost-cutting measure.
The students also wanted to show support for the estimated 108 affected employees, many of whom have worked at the college for decades, The Chronicle-Telegram reported.
Carmen Twillie Ambar, president of the private liberal arts college in Ohio, said the move would save the institution $2 million in salary and benefits.
She explained in a letter posted on the college's website that employee compensation makes up 63 percent of the college's budget and noted a three-to-one ratio of students to employees. Ambar said Oberlin administrators have taken a number of steps to cut costs -- including by changing health-care and retirement benefits, reducing the size of administrative staff, and relying less on visiting faculty -- but the college still "faced unprecedented financial and demographic challenges, including an unsustainable structural deficit."
