University faculty and staff received some good news this morning — they will not be forced to take a salary cut because of budget cuts just yet.The University proposed furlough plan is indefinitely on hold for now, Chancellor Michael Martin said in a campus e-mail this morning.After having to cut about $19 million from its operating budget, the University constructed their furlough plan earlier this summer as a way of avoiding layoffs.A furlough is required, unpaid time off. A staff member’s salary would be reduced by the amount of time they were furloughed.Gov. Bobby Jindal is enforcing a “freeze” on filling vacant employee positions at public universities in the state, but the institutions will be able to keep the state dollars set aside for those positions, Martin said. Which means there is no need for furloughs at this time.”I would be remiss if I did not caution you that the possibility for furloughs at some point in the future does still exist, although we hope to avoid that option if at all possible,” Martin said. “But, should further budget reductions occur, the university may have to reconsider the use of the furlough to achieve those outcomes.”—-Contact Kyle Bove at [email protected]