About 100 North Dakota state employees interested in buyouts

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — Facing the prospect of jobs cuts due to North Dakota's struggling finances, about 100 employees from cabinet-level agencies have expressed interest in taking voluntary buyouts.

Republican Gov. Doug Burgum last month gave appointed agency heads the option to offer the buyouts, and letters went out to some 3,600 employees with the offer. In a letter drafted by Burgum's office, the agencies told employees the buyouts might limit the need for layoffs.

North Dakota has 17 executive-level agencies, and 11 offered the buyouts. Each agency offering the buyouts had takers, along with at least one person from the governor's office, said Becky Sicble, the state's interim human resources director.

The deadline to apply for a buyout is Monday, and it's up to the agencies to determine which buyouts are accepted, Sicble said.

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