There has been a surge of layoffs across the U.S., compounding workforce challenges as agencies prepare for a mass retirement event long referred to as the “silver tsunami.” Governments have been implementing creative solutions to address workforce challenges, including automation and diversified talent pools.
When layoffs are inevitable, a strategic approach can help mitigate the negative impacts that may come from reducing the size of a workforce. That’s the plan in Baton Rouge.
The consolidated city-parish will be facing layoffs in the new year across its government, with impacts including but not limited to the Department of Information Services (DIS), according to Eric Romero, its director until his retirement Jan. 1.
The reason, Romero said, is not a simple case of government budget issues, although those constraints do exist. Instead, the layoffs are largely a result of a recent change in which unincorporated parts of the parish were incorporated as the city of St. George. This shift, approved by the Louisiana Supreme Court in 2024, resulted in the loss of a significant part of Baton Rouge’s tax base.
As such, officials could start planning for the impacts of this revenue loss ahead of time. There was even an effort to do tax rededication, which voters did not pass, and when that initiative failed to advance, officials knew layoffs were imminent. And even prior to that November election, it was known that this was a possibility. Because of it, Romero took a cautious approach to workforce throughout 2025.
“I was purposely not filling positions because I was afraid that I’d have to lay these people off with only a few months of service,” Romero said.
In DIS, 15 positions had to be given up, out of a staff of 47 allotted positions, Romero said. Civil service rules protect employees with seniority, but that was not the only factor Romero considered. His goal was to distribute layoffs across the department sections in an effort to divide the impact. Had his decisions been made solely based on years of service, Romero said he would have lost nearly two sections — the majority — of the department. Rather than losing one or two people from each team, losing a larger amount from one section would have been “detrimental to operations,” he said.
He advised other governments facing layoffs to take a similar approach, ensuring that ancillary services remain operational while meeting budgetary needs. To do so, he said, officials may have to “spread the pain.”
With a reduced staff across its government, Romero said Baton Rouge officials are looking to AI for task automation; city leaders are exploring using AI in call centers to reduce the number of staff needed there. Another potential use case is AI in development, to inform decision-making around building demolition. In DIS, specifically, Romero said the team will still be able to do the tasks that are necessary, but will not be able to do them as efficiently as before. However, he said, he knows “the department has been structured in a way that it can continue to function, even if we have a reduced staff.”
The timing of these layoffs is its own challenge, Romero said, who was preparing the strategy while planning for his own retirement, which is now official. His replacement is Rizwan Ahmed. Romero said he is “optimistic that [Ahmed]’s up to the task.”
Baton Rouge is certainly not unique in its quest to address workforce challenges amid budget constraints. In August, the consolidated city-county of Denver faced layoffs. Its Technology Services department laid off people in seven filled positions, had three retirements or resignations, and abolished 40 positions for a total of 50 eliminated positions, according to an email from Communications Specialist for Technology Services Amanda Weston.
“Technology Services leadership took an active, lead role in this process to ensure every decision was informed by operational data and long-term strategy,” Denver Chief Artificial Intelligence and Information Officer Suma Nallapati said via email. Nallapati joined Denver as CIO in 2023 after serving as Colorado state CIO.
The decision-making process involved a comprehensive audit of the department’s organizational structure to ensure that Denver’s “core digital infrastructure” would not be compromised. This included evaluating agency needs and prioritizing resources for high-impact initiatives, she said. The goal was to align the department’s workforce with the locality’s priorities — both fiscal and technological.
“We are confident that our current team has the expertise and tools necessary to meet our milestones and continue modernizing Denver’s technological landscape,” Nallapati said.
