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Committee approves sending two parks positions to full board; HR report shows ~11% vacancy rate
Summary
Ways & Means approved forwarding two new parks positions to the full board and received an HR briefing showing a sustained county vacancy rate (~11.27%), recruitment difficulties in prosecutor and law enforcement offices, and staffing challenges at the youth facility.
EATON COUNTY, Mich. — The Eaton County Ways and Means Committee on Apr. 11 voted to send two proposed parks positions to the full board and heard a broader personnel update from HR showing persistent vacancies and recruitment challenges across multiple county departments.
Parks positions: The committee authorized forwarding two new positions in the parks department to the full board for approval: a seasonal summer-camp manager (seasonal, top pay estimated at $21.63/hour; estimated annual seasonal expense about $11,606) and a full-time groundskeeper foreman (top rate $26.76/hour; full annual cost budgeted roughly $93,250 including fringe). HR and parks leaders told the committee both positions would be funded through the parks millage and would not require general-fund support. Committee members moved and supported the recommendation to forward the positions to the full board.
Countywide vacancy picture: HR reported an 11.27% vacancy rate for authorized full-time equivalents (FTEs), with 12-month average near 12.71% and long-standing recruitment and retention pressure. The report highlighted staffing shortages in several critical offices: - Prosecutor's office: significant retention and recruitment issues for attorneys, with several departures to judicial, AG's office and neighboring counties; higher wages and lower case loads elsewhere cited as drivers. The prosecutor has held positions open amid budget uncertainty. - Sheriff's Office: multiple vacancies in road patrol and jail corrections; roughly 10 deputies in field training at one point with net coverage still down; recruitment and academy timelines remain long (roughly a year to place a fully certified officer on patrol). - Youth facility and trial courts: interconnected staffing challenges with complex onboarding demands.
Operational impacts: HR and department leaders described the practical effects: long onboarding cycles, overtime and coverage burdens for remaining staff, and constraints on service capacity. HR recommended monitoring federal grant dependencies, continuing background checks and driver-record checks, and standardizing work-from-home agreements.
Budget note: HR and administration said the parks positions are budgeted from parks millage revenues and would be added to the positions allocation list upon full-board approval. If further seasonal funding is needed later, parks would return with a budget amendment request.
Next steps: The committee forwarded the parks positions and asked administration to include vacancy and grant-exposure details in upcoming budget discussions.
