Committee hears ITA/Workday analysis on LAFD payroll; officials recommend consolidating HR into Workday

Los Angeles City Councilmembers on the Personnel Committee were presented with a technical review on March 11 of payroll issues affecting the Los Angeles Fire Department tied to the city’s Workday payroll implementation.

The Information Technology Agency (ITA) summarized a report done with LAFD and Workday showing that payroll problems stem in part from data split across multiple systems, including a legacy network scheduling system (NSS). "The recommendation is to have HR data that is currently managed, some in Workday and some in NSS or other HR systems in the fire department, to really consolidate all HR functions in Workday as the master or system of record," ITA project lead Ed Magos said.

Why it matters: Committee members and department staff said incorrect paychecks have affected LAFD employees for months and that the city needs both near-term fixes and a long-term architecture that prevents recurring errors.

Details of the analysis and next steps

Magos told the committee that the report identifies root causes tied to NSS’s lack of real-time validation with Workday and recommended moving time-tracking and absence management into Workday so balances and approvals appear immediately rather than requiring retroactive corrections.

Sam Ynajosa, LAFD chief information officer, said LAFD and ITA agree NSS is dated but they want a direct comparison of what Workday can do versus a third-party scheduling/timekeeping product before committing. "We are still pushing for a head to head comparison between what Workday can actually do and what a third party solution can actually do given scenarios to both sides in seeing what performs best for LAFD's needs," Ynajosa said.

Cost and schedule estimates

Workday told the committee it needs roughly four weeks to create a proper cost estimate for migrating additional functions, with an implementation window of about six to eight months once scoped. LAFD said a third-party replacement, if selected, could take nine to 12 months from contract signing to full implementation. ITA provided a high-level ballpark previously in materials of about $1,500,000 for related budget requests.

Short-, mid- and long-term approach

Committee members pressed staff to keep employees’ immediate paychecks the priority. ITA and the controller’s office described a three-pronged approach: immediate fixes already in progress to reduce errors, midterm operational and staffing steps, and a structural technology change to eliminate the recurring mismatches between systems. "Some of the areas ... the Tiger team and the work that's being done right now is fixing even current issues between NSS and Workday to have cleaner payroll," Magos said.

Action taken

Committee Chair Tim McOsker moved and members approved continuing the item and directed ITA, the City Administrative Officer (CAO) and LAFD to report back on the fiscal impacts of the ITA recommendations and whether any recommended work should have been covered under the original Workday contract. A roll call was taken and the motion passed with recorded "yes" votes from councilmembers present.

What remains unanswered

Officials agreed on the need to replace or significantly re-architect NSS and to run a vendor "bake-off" to test Workday against third-party options in LAFD-specific scenarios. Staff said a more precise estimate of costs and a final recommendation will require the additional scoping work the committee requested.

Ending

Committee members emphasized urgency for short-term fixes while requesting a clear fiscal analysis and timeline for any larger technology replacement. The item will return after ITA, CAO and LAFD complete the requested fiscal-impact report.