NEW YORK, NY May 15, 2009 —The American Red Cross in New York says it's cutting 23 percent of its paid workforce to compensate for a drop in donations. Terry Bischoff, the CEO of the New York chapter, says the layoffs will mean relying more on volunteers. She says preparations for major catastrophic disasters will have to slow down, but day to day relief for fires, building evacuations and other emergencies won't be affected.

BISCHOFF: We do have 8-10 disasters a day that we respond to and we will continue to do that.

Bischoff says cash donations are down but pro-bono work and material donations at the Red Cross are up. She says the layoffs are meant to save $3 to $4 million.