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Civil Service report: 2025 recruiting drove hundreds of hires but no-show rates and disqualifications remain high
Summary
Civil Service presented 2025 statistics: 189 recruitments, ~5,400 applications, nearly 3,900 certified applicants, ~1,600 background checks, 198 full-time hires, 53 part-time hires and 194 promotions; staff cited high no-show rates—especially for public-safety testing—and said ERP and outreach improvements are planned.
During a June 17 work session before the regular meeting, Secretary and Chief Examiner Ken Thomas and Employment Manager David Lawrence reviewed Civil Service activity for 2025 and identified hiring challenges the city plans to address.
Lawrence said Civil Service conducted 189 recruitments and received about 5,400 applications in 2025, certifying nearly 3,900 applicants as meeting minimum qualifications. Staff performed roughly 1,600 background investigations and facilitated 198 full-time hires, 53 part-time hires and 194 promotions. The report noted significant applicant drop-off due to unqualified applications, exam failures and high no-show rates—particularly in public-safety roles.
Thomas and Lawrence discussed steps to improve candidate engagement, including reviewing job descriptions, updating wages and competencies, expanding outreach, and integrating the city’s enterprise resource planning (ERP) system to improve tracking and follow-up. Commissioners asked for more data on temporary-to-permanent conversions and whether the length of the hiring process contributes to withdrawals; staff said some delays can matter, but exam no-shows and scheduling conflicts are major contributors.
Commissioners and board members also discussed reinstatement rules for separated employees and whether the current one-year reinstatement window should be shortened or require reapplication; no policy change was adopted at the session.
Staff said they can provide additional data on conversions and resignation details on request and that recruitment improvements will continue alongside ERP implementation.
