Thirteen people were cut from Somerville payrolls this week. The layoffs, affecting a total 29 positions, 16 of which are vacant, were announced Friday evening by mayor Jake Wilson as part of addressing the city’s $5.4 million projected budget shortfall for the next fiscal year.
“Layoffs are always a last resort. But like many communities across the commonwealth and country, we have found ourselves facing a difficult budget season,” Wilson said in a message posted on the city website.
The city first tried to raise revenues, pay down debt with reserves and make strategic cuts to nonpersonnel costs citywide. “While those measures made some headway, we were still left with needing to further reduce spending,” Wilson said.
In addition to the 29 cut positions, five positions have been transferred among departments to match changing needs, Wilson said.
The employees whose jobs were cut are on paid administrative leave through the end of June with continued pay and benefits, and Human Resources will assist them through this transition, the city said.
Wilson said:
“Any layoff is painful for the employees affected, the colleagues they worked alongside and the community that relies on their daily work. I’ve been laid off twice myself and have had co-workers laid off too, so I know how hard and awful it is. I cannot say strongly enough that we cut positions, not people. Somerville is fortunate to have extraordinarily dedicated public servants. The employees impacted by these layoffs have served this community well, and I’m grateful for their work. As we move forward, we will be taking every operational step needed to ensure the work continues through new approaches and structures, so we can continue to serve the community well.”
Workers broke the news about City Hall layoffs shortly after 2 p.m. Friday, heading into a Memorial Day weekend, and Wilson’s statement was posted several hours later. Friday evenings are a standard time for governments and businesses to announce bad or controversial news; in this case, Somerville City Hall will be closed Monday through the news cycle.
An email was sent to Somerville spokespeople Friday evening for specifics around the timing of the layoffs and their announcement, and details on what positions are affected.
Concerns of targeted layoffs
There were concerns from workers that layoffs targeted staff in the areas of diversity, equity and inclusion and who had signed up for representation by a new union, Somerville Workers United-Afscme 93.
Around 220 workers were set to be added to collective bargaining processes, Working Mass reported in early May.
“Multiple nonunion employees that Working Mass spoke with shared that feelings of destabilization in their jobs began in late 2024, but were exacerbated in 2025. Nonunionized city workers have felt increasingly unstable as Greater Boston continues to lose tens of thousands of jobs – a trend that has only worsened,” reporter Travis Wayne said. “City workers already anxious about their employment since 2025 heard silence from the mayor.”
If city spokespeople confirm that layoffs have unsettled diversity initiatives in Somerville, it won’t be without local precedent: In November, the neighboring city of Cambridge laid off seven workers across six commissions and offices as the city manager restructured its Equity and Inclusion Department for more efficiency.
“It became evident to chief Brown that each commission was carrying out similar sets of administrative tasks,” said city spokesperson Jeremy Warnick in a Nov. 21 email, referring to Cambridge’s chief of equity and inclusion, Deidre Travis Brown.
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