County HR reports most long-term vacancies have seen activity; only eight general-fund positions have been inactive over 12 months

Chief Human Resources Officer Ken Herman briefed the Fulton County Board of Commissioners on April 2 about the county’s authorized but unfilled positions. Herman said the county currently identifies roughly 800 authorized but vacant positions across general fund and other funding sources, but that the count of positions vacant with no activity for 12 months or more has declined.

Herman told commissioners that at a previous review there were 41 general-fund full-time vacancies idle for more than 12 months; recruitment and administrative activity have reduced that count to eight positions, with an estimated salary-dollar value of about $450,000. He said the broader 800-vacant-position figure includes positions vacant for less than 12 months and that the county’s FY2025 budget included attrition assumptions reflected in hiring patterns.

Commissioners discussed the causes and implications of prolonged vacancies. Several members said long-running vacancies can be a symptom of noncompetitive pay or challenging job requirements and urged HR to consider whether funds tied to long-term vacancies might be repurposed to meet urgent needs in social services or to raise pay scales to improve recruitment. Commissioner Marvin Arrington and others recommended detailed departmental analysis rather than an across-the-board reallocation, and requested further breakdown by department for the eight long-term vacancies; Herman provided a departmental list naming at-large office, IT, sheriff’s department (one), public works, behavioral health and the tax assessor among locations with long-term vacancies.