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Council hears vacancy report and presses HR to prioritize public works, water and sewer hires
Summary
Director Richardson briefed the commission on vacancies and recruitment efforts; commissioners said public works, water and sewer vacancies are affecting service and asked HR for clearer, department-grouped reports, anticipated fill dates, and succession planning.
The General Counsel Commission on Feb. 13 received a detailed vacancy and recruitment report from Director Richardson and pressed staff to prioritize filling positions in public works and water and sewer, which commissioners said are affecting service delivery.
Director Richardson outlined recent recruitment activity, noting slow January hiring due to winter weather and describing outreach at community events and targeted postings to GovernmentJobs/NEOGov, Indeed and professional listservs. She reported two truck driver positions should be filled by the end of the month (one candidate had a conditional offer with a date set), a park-maintainer practical exam was scheduled for March 4, and a heavy-equipment operator had been rescheduled twice because of weather.
Why it matters: commissioners repeatedly flagged public works and water/sewer vacancies (9-10 positions noted in discussion) as essential-service gaps that can slow repairs and service response. Committee members asked whether vacancies were causing overtime or reliance on temporaries; Richardson said workers' compensation absences and retirements also create short-term staffing gaps and that HR is actively filling prioritized slots.
Report clarity and follow-ups: council members asked staff to separate truly funded vacancies from classification-list entries that are listed "at a dollar" (not funded) and to reformat future reports by department so the flow of requisition/backfill is clearer. Richardson said she had emailed department heads asking for anticipated retirements and priority backfills over the next four months and agreed to provide a cleaner, department-grouped vacancy report showing where bottlenecks exist.
Recruiting tools and constraints: Richardson described channels used (city portal -> NEOGov/GovernmentJobs, Indeed, CCM, niche listservs and social media) and confirmed the city issues targeted postings for specialized roles; commissioners asked whether more proactive headhunting should be pursued at the mayoral level. Attorney Neske advised caution, saying direct solicitation practices should be checked against municipal hiring policies and civil-service rules.
Next step: HR will deliver an updated, more readable vacancy report for the full council and will follow up on anticipated retirements and prioritized backfills; commissioners said they expect a focused update on public works next month.
