Gwinnett lays off 30 planning workers

Gwinnett County has laid off 30 employees in its department of planning and development, officials confirmed Friday.

The move is part of a plan to eliminate 93 county positions in two departments to save money.

The action affected 79 jobs in planning and development and 14 in water resources.

On Friday, 19 regular, full-time employees in planning and development were told their positions were eliminated, said Kenneth Poe, director of human resources for Gwinnett County. Another 11 probationary employees in the department were let go the day before, Poe said.

Employees in most of the remaining positions scheduled for elimination either were relocated to jobs in other departments or took severance packages the county had offered.

County officials expect the projected savings will total $4.5 million in 2009 and $5.9 million in 2010.

“There have been a number of vacant positions that were eliminated as part of the interim budget,” Poe said, “so we’re hopeful there will be no other individuals impacted beyond that.”