Civil Service clears layoffs of LSU hospital employees

BATON ROUGE – The Louisiana Civil Service Commission has cleared the way for the state to lay off nearly 4,000 employees at LSU hospitals in Lafayette, Lake Charles, Houma and New Orleans. With a 3-2 vote, the commission gave approval for 3,976 employees, 2,771 of whom are classified state Civil Service, to receive pink slips effective "at the end of business June 23." Commission approval was another step in Gov. Bobby Jindal's move to get the state out of the hospital business and privatize their operations. It was the final step for the four hospitals.