As part of its promise to find “internal efficiencies” as part of its

, TriMet has laid off eight administrative employees and frozen four other positions in the past month.

But that doesn't mean Oregon's largest transit agency – which is facing a $12 million budget gap

– has instituted a hiring freeze.

As

for much of its financial pickle, it has

, with the salaries up to $123,000 a year.

“We are not in a hiring freeze,” said TriMet spokeswoman Kellie Randall. “However, we are in the fourth year of our wage freeze. We have only been hiring for mission critical positions.”

Apparently, director of customer service is not considered one of those positions. In what may looks like a perplexing decision for riders who have been waited forever on hold or never received a call back from TriMet's customer service hotline, the director filling that position was among the eight layoffs.

Two years after its most tragic bus crash, TriMet has also handed a pink slip to a system safety specialist.

Here's the complete list of laid off positions (TriMet has not released the names or salaries attached to the jobs):

Coordinator, Organizational Development (2 positions)

Planner II

Director, Customer Service

Manager, Marketing Analysis

Software Development Lead

Manager, Procedures Development

Specialist, System Safety

Meanwhile, TriMet is moving forward with hiring a construction system safety specialist, a Linux computer system specialist, a network systems engineer and a human resources “business partner.”

The human resources position pays up to $123,000 a year plus benefits. Two of the computer system positions pay up to $94,482 plus benefits.

TriMet is also looking for a new bus driver and service worker, positions that pay up to $25.13 an hour plus benefits.

So, how did General Manager Neil McFarlane determine that a human resources position was more “mission critical” than, say, a customer services director?

“The changes have been a result of an ongoing reorganization effort to realign our resources,” Randall said.

Customer service was a standalone department under Carolyn Young, who retired late last year, prompting a reorganization “so that fare sales was moved to our Finance and Administration department,” Randall said.

“Customer Service functions were consolidated under one manager,

, and the department now reports to the Director of Marketing. The Customer Service Director position was no longer needed.”

As for the HR job, she said it was left open by a retirement and has been downgraded from director status. “The position is critical in recruiting, succession planning, organizational development, training, and leadership development,” Randall said, “but it will not have any management responsibility.”

Speaking of downgrading, TriMet is in the middle of a new round of public hearings on its revised plan for fare hikes and services cuts. A final decision on that plan is expect in April.

In other headlines from around the commuting universe:

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Portland Tribune:

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Lifehacker:

The Oregonian: