Milwaukee County Department of Human Resources leaders presented the departments 2026 recommended budget to the Committee on Finance, highlighting recruiting and diversity gains, compliance work tied to state law, and technology and compensation projects planned for 2026.

Gennaro Baez, introduced himself as "the Director of HR Operations, Learning and Development Talent Acquisition" and said the departments mission is to support the countys strategic plan by managing staffing, compensation, benefits and performance for county employees. "These aren't just HR statistics, they represent people," Baez said, noting a year-over-year rise in hires and diverse recruitment.

The nut graf: HR officials said they achieved roughly a 60% increase in applicants hired and a nearly 40% increase in diverse hiring in 2025 versus 2024, described an ongoing compensation transformation that will transition eligible positions to an updated pay structure by year-end, and said they will move leave administration from Voya to Prudential to improve mobile access and leave management.

Dan Theriault, director of diversity, equity and inclusion, listed 2025 accomplishments including employee engagement reporting, a county culture statement, volunteerism events that collected hygiene items for the Sojourner Center, and a "redefining equity summit." Daphne Ursu, director of employee relations, told supervisors that Wisconsin Act 12 has required the department to pause and revise practices to ensure compliance.

Separately, Dan Lauer of the Office of Strategy, Budget and Performance presented Item 2 (nondepartmental expenditures) and said the HR and payroll system account budgets hosted payroll and HR-related hosted systems at about $2 million for 2026, a modest increase over 2025, and that central salary costs include an allocation of $1.8 million to support final compensation transformation actions expected in December. Lauer also noted a 1% general employee increase is budgeted directly in department budgets.

HR leaders said 2026 work will include an inaugural risk assessment and internal audit program in retirement and pension services; merger of diversity, equity and inclusion with learning and development to strengthen employee experience; quarterly performance reporting for retirement/pension services; and a countywide employee engagement survey.

Why it matters: HR officials argued that improved recruitment and diverse hiring strengthen county operations and that compliance with state law and completion of compensation restructuring are central to retaining staff. Supervisors asked about centralization and how HR supports unique departments such as the sheriff's department.

Next steps: HR plans to continue implementation of the compensation transformation, complete the WRS (Wisconsin Retirement System) transition for eligible employees, roll out leave administration to Prudential and provide quarterly reporting on pension board governance and performance metrics.

Speakers quoted in this article spoke during the Department of Human Resources presentation and the nondepartmental expenditures briefing that followed.