Human Resources commissioner tells committee telework is here to stay, cites staffing progress and big ERP project

The Vermont Department of Human Resources’ commissioner, Beth Vistigee, told the Senate Committee on Government Operations on March 20 that telework is now an enduring feature of the state workforce and that the department has largely recovered staffing levels lost during the pandemic.

Vistigee told the panel she started as commissioner in 2017 and that the department now employs about 106 people. “Our telework policy was put in place in 2012,” she said, and expanded sharply during the pandemic; many employees now telework some or all of their hours under formal telework agreements with supervisors. She said the department added several positions during her tenure — three positions moved under DHR from another agency and about eight positions were added roughly two years ago to respond to post‑pandemic hiring and administrative workload.

The discussion centered on several operational priorities for DHR: maintaining recruitment momentum, coordinating telework with the state’s real‑estate needs, stabilizing vacancies, and launching a major enterprise resource planning (ERP) replacement for payroll and related systems. “We are embarking on this big, enterprise resource planning project, which will change our ... system — the system that we do the payroll in, that we track all employees in, and then to the budgeting system, to the accounting system,” Vistigee said, describing the ERP as a “huge multiyear project.”

Why it matters: telework affects office space planning and recruitment, and the ERP replacement affects how payroll, position classification and budgeting operate across state government. The committee pressed for details about whether telework would lead to reduced office footprints and how DHR plans to sustain recent hiring gains.

On telework and office space, Vistigee said Vermont has not faced the same pressure to cut office footprints as some larger states because local office space is not as constrained. She said DHR is coordinating with the administration and expects to do more work to inventory where telework is occurring and how that should influence long‑term space decisions. “I just had a conversation with [the secretary] earlier this week about trying to coordinate more of the telework with the space needs,” she said.

On staffing and vacancies, Vistigee said voluntary turnover has declined from its pandemic peak and that vacancy savings have returned “much closer to normal.” She summarized recruiting challenges but said Vermont is seeing progress: “We are really kind of pleased with the progress we're seeing in those areas,” she said, and added that the state’s ability to offer remote work helps attract candidates who might otherwise seek work outside Vermont.

Committee members asked whether DHR actively targets federal employees or other pools of workers; Vistigee said the department has participated on national calls and sees some federal employees apply, but it has not mounted a targeted federal recruitment campaign. “We're on all — we're still in areas where they can find us and they can find the jobs,” she said, describing the evidence as anecdotal rather than captured in a formal tracking system.

Several senators thanked Vistigee for her responsiveness to the Legislature and pressed her on how she balances providing data and advocacy upward in the administration. Vistigee said it is part of the job to supply data and candid advice even when the administration decides on a different course. “If the decision is different than one that I've advocated for, as you said, so be it. But having the opportunity to provide the information … is what I try to do with the legislature as well,” she said.

Vistigee also reminded the committee the department is pursuing a long‑running classification and compensation project; she noted the governor’s budget included funding to move that work forward. Multiple senators offered to support that project when appropriate.

The committee did not take formal action on the topics discussed. The hearing concluded with committee members thanking Vistigee and noting they would consider her confirmation in a subsequent meeting.

Less critical details: Vistigee described DHR’s mission as internal service — payroll, classification, benefits, investigations and labor negotiations — and emphasized the department’s focus on talent acquisition and employee engagement. She said telework arrangements vary, from a few hours a week to full‑time remote work, and are memorialized in telework agreements signed by employees and supervisors.