By MAUREEN PICHÉ

POTSDAM – Two Potsdam Town Council members want village and town employees to rest assured their jobs are not in jeopardy should village dissolution take place.

Town Supervisor Marie Regan and Councilman Michael Zagrobelny said they’ve heard there’s a wave of concern among municipal employees that many will be laid off or replaced.

But both say the current staff will be needed in the case of dissolution because the same work will still be there waiting to be done. And their experience is important.

“There’s a feeling among union members and others that we’re going to throw them out on the street and their jobs will be up for grabs,” Zagrobelny said. “That’s certainly not going to happen.”

While Regan and Zagrobelny point out dissolution of the village would render all village contracts null and void, negotiations would take place and new contacts would be created.

“Negotiations might result in slight differences in salaries, but we need the staff to keep things running,” Regan said. “We know many of these employees have vested interests in their jobs, and they are still qualified for the new jobs.

“It has to be made clear that it will only be through attrition and retirement that jobs would be lost,” she added.