ISABELLA STEWART GARDNER MUSEUM ANNOUNCES LAYOFFS

Stung by a 29 percent loss to its endowment, the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum on Friday laid off 12 employees, about 9 percent of its 140 person workforce, according to the Boston Herald. The museum said the global economic crisis forced the cuts, which include a hiring freeze, cuts to all senior staff salaries by 5 percent, and a freeze to the salaries of all other employees at current levels. The museum, which has a $10.4 million annual operating budget, remains a popular attraction and is trying to raise about $140 million for an ambitious expansion project.