蜜柚直播

City data shows the time it took for 911 operators to answer calls in 蜜柚直播 fell short of the national standard throughout most of 2021, a problem that officials said is mainly driven by understaffing and an influx of new trainees.

The Star compared 蜜柚直播鈥檚 911 鈥渞ing times鈥� to a standard set by the National Emergency Numbers Association, which requires 95% of 911 calls to be answered within 20 seconds of receiving a call.

The city did not meet that standard during 10 of the past 13 months. March represented the highest rate of non-compliance when more than one-fifth of all 911 calls were not answered in time.

鈥淓very big emergency that comes into our city starts right here,鈥� said Sharon McDonough, the deputy director of the Public Safety Communications Department. 鈥淥ur ability to get that right impacts those incidents all the way through to the end.鈥�

McDonough said staffing changes around October 2020 could have been a major factor that led to the lackluster performance this year. Before then, data shows that the department exceeded the national standard every month dating back to at least January 2019.

The department needs a total of 219 workers to fully staff its 911 center. It currently has just 90 trained employees who are responsible for answering about 40,000 emergency calls every month.

The department has beefed up recruitment efforts and recently hired 33 new trainees. Officials called the development a 鈥渂lessing and a curse鈥� and said it鈥檚 been one of the main reasons 蜜柚直播鈥檚 911 answer times did not measure up to the national standard this year.

Trained operators need to teach trainees in real time, be prepared to take over their calls, and step away from the phones to teach classes 鈥� all while juggling hundreds of their own calls. The limited number of trained staff also means that nearly every operator has a trainee during their shift.

鈥淭rainees obviously take a little more time. We鈥檙e investing in those people for a better outcome down the road so that we can continue to improve the service that we鈥檙e providing,鈥� said department administrator Geoff Kuhn. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 probably been the biggest impact over the last couple of months.鈥�

The success rate on 911 answer times could improve once the newcomers graduate from training and more operators are able to work independently.

It is unclear if hiring more trainees would prolong the problem, but the department has made efforts to expand its candidate pool with the goal of improving the time it takes for an operator to answer a 911 call.

For example, they now include typing classes during training rather than disqualifying candidates who do not have that skill. They have axed certain hiring procedures 鈥� such as polygraph testing 鈥� to speed up that process as well.

A newly hired recruiter will also begin seeking out candidates to fill department positions as part of a public safety initiative funded by the City Manager鈥檚 Office.

Beyond the recruitment efforts, department leaders are focused on retaining employees by creating opportunities for them to move through the ranks.

鈥淲e鈥檝e outlined what that career progression looks like for our staff so that you can forecast,鈥� Kuhn said. 鈥淚f you really want to come in, give your best effort and promote through, it鈥檚 all based on your ability to move through rather than us having the vacancy to do it.鈥�

蜜柚直播 officials also approved raises for city employees earlier this year, which increased department salaries at all levels and boosted the starting pay to $18 an hour for trainees.

Staffers said the increase, paired with the department鈥檚 career progression approach, will allow employees to progressively climb the pay scale and make a career out of their position in the department.

The strategy could allow the department to hold on to existing employees 鈥� and their expertise that鈥檚 needed to train newcomers 鈥� while department leaders continue to build up the center鈥檚 workforce and expand its capacity to answer 911 calls as quickly as possible.

鈥淚t has incentivized new hires and people who are already working here,鈥� said 911 operator Alicia Rubio. 鈥淵ou have room to grow in this department now. That鈥檚 another thing that the pay helped set up.鈥�

Potential candidates can apply for department positions .

Nearly every city of 蜜柚直播 employee complied with the vaccine mandate by Thursday鈥檚 deadline, when workers could officially be fired if they continued to defy the policy.

The remaining noncompliant employees 鈥� who represent 0.3% of the city鈥檚 workforce 鈥� can now be terminated according to a rule that made Dec. 1 the last day for workers to get fully vaccinated, have a medical exemption or receive a 鈥渞eligious accommodation.鈥�

Officials said the 99.7% rate of compliance is a positive step toward ensuring residents can safely access public services.

It also represents the end of a monthslong standoff between city officials and employees who refused to follow the mandate. The conflict prompted concern that the policy would worsen the city鈥檚 existing staff shortage, which has already affected services ranging from policing to park maintenance.

Only 11 employees across eight city departments are now eligible for termination because of noncompliance as of Thursday. Officials said those potential vacancies will have no impact on services.

鈥淭he city of 蜜柚直播鈥檚 vaccine policy has proven to be overwhelmingly effective in increasing our vaccination rate and protecting the community we serve,鈥� said Mayor Regina Romero. 鈥淢y gratitude goes to each and every employee who has done their part, especially at a time when COVID-19 cases are surging.鈥�

Regina Romero

蜜柚直播 Mayor Regina Romero thanked city employees for getting vaccinated.

Data shows that 10% of compliant city employees remain unvaccinated, however. Those workers received a medical exemption or religious accommodation, which is given to individuals who object to the vaccination 鈥渙n the basis of sincerely held religious beliefs or practices.鈥�

The actual rate of vaccination within 蜜柚直播鈥檚 workforce is around 90%, or about 3,500 of the city鈥檚 3,900 employees. There were a handful of departments with 100% vaccination rates, including the City Manager and Public Defender offices.

Citywide, the number of employees who complied with the mandate took a sharp turn following the city council鈥檚 4-3 decision on Oct. 19 to fire those who didn鈥檛 comply. At the time about 300 workers were out of compliance and previous penalties, like five-day suspensions, had failed to produce results.

Councilmembers who voted against the motion raised concerns about the potentially devastating impact on city services that could result from firing so many employees at once. Many of the noncompliant workers were concentrated in key offices like the 蜜柚直播 Police Department, where there was already a 12% shortage of active-duty sworn officers. The city鈥檚 911 call center was also a hot spot and current staffing levels there are only at about 60% of what鈥檚 needed.

Despite the risk of potentially having to fire employees 蜜柚直播 couldn鈥檛 afford to lose, Councilman Steve Kozachik 鈥� a staunch proponent of the policy 鈥� said the decision was a no-brainer.

鈥淭he issue for me is ensuring that every contact that every citizen in this community has with a city employee is as safe as it can be,鈥� Kozachik said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 the reason this isn鈥檛 a difficult balance for me, this is simply saying if you sign on as a public servant, we鈥檙e going to mandate that those words have meaning to the public when you come in contact with them.鈥�

The gamble paid off for the city as nine of its 17 major departments achieved 100% compliance with the mandate by the termination deadline. None of the other eight departments are at risk of losing more than 1% of their workforce, either:

City Courts: 1 noncompliant employee, 1% of the department鈥檚 workforce.

蜜柚直播 Police Department: 1 employee, 0.1% of workforce.

Public Safety Communications: 1 employee, 0.8% of workforce.

蜜柚直播 Fire Department: 1 employee, 0.2% of workforce.

Environmental General Services Department: 3 employees, 0.9% of workforce.

Parks and Recreation: 1 employee, 0.5% of workforce.

蜜柚直播 Water: 1 employee, 0.2% of workforce.

Business Services: 2 employees, 0.9% of workforce.

City Manager Michael Ortega said the few positions that have been affected by the mandate will be filled as part of a broader effort to fully staff city offices.

City Manager Michael Ortega

蜜柚直播 city manager Michael Ortega is developing a plan to restaff city departments.

He released a staffing strategy at a recent council meeting that included numerous steps to generally beef up 蜜柚直播鈥檚 workforce, such as making the hiring process quicker and more efficient.

鈥淚 think what鈥檚 also important here, as we go down this path, I think that the discussion point for this is continuity of operations,鈥� Ortega said at the meeting. 鈥淲hat we鈥檝e done is kind of turn this into an opportunity to kind of rethink how we approach business within the city of 蜜柚直播.鈥�

The staffing plan will play out over the coming year. In the meantime, officials are confident that the vaccine mandate terminations will have no effect on services.

蜜柚直播鈥檚 understaffed Code Enforcement Division has been unable to handle the number of cases it has received this year, leading to a backlog of over 1,400 complaints concerning violations that can impact resident safety, property value and quality of life.

The division has a staff of 17 full-time employees who enforce city rules ranging from zoning codes to tall weeds in yards and junked vehicles, to building safety.

Inspectors make sure homeowners maintain their property and do not build structures that will devalue the neighborhood, for example. They also decide whether to demolish buildings if they鈥檙e liable to collapse because of structural damage.

But staffing problems and a large jump in cases have crippled the division鈥檚 ability to fulfill those duties, leaving residents wondering if their complaints have fallen into a 鈥渂lack hole鈥� while nearby code violations threaten to tank their property values.

鈥淥ur residents feel the system is broken,鈥� said Councilman Steve Kozachik. 鈥淭hey don鈥檛 know the status of what鈥檚 happening as this thing kind of wanders through the process.鈥�

Kozachik and other city officials do not share the view that the system is 鈥渂roken.鈥� They say the issue was created by a combination of problems that have eroded and overloaded the code enforcement effort to the point that it鈥檚 no longer effective.

Plans have been set in motion to fix the problem 鈥� such as hiring more staff, changing division practices and creating disincentives to deter residents from ignoring citations 鈥� but it is unclear when residents will start seeing the results.

Staffing cuts, the pandemic and a surge of cases

Since 2006, the Code Enforcement Division has lost about 60% of its staff. Carlos De La Torre, who currently oversees the division, said the position cuts may have been a result of the financial hit 蜜柚直播 took during the Great Recession.

Staffing levels had remained the same for at least the past seven years until the pandemic further diminished the division鈥檚 work force.

鈥淭en out of the 17 positions were impacted by COVID,鈥� said De La Torre, who is the director of the Environmental and General Services Department that houses the Code Enforcement Division. 鈥淨uite frankly, we were very lean, and we were not really equipped to handle the surge number of cases we have seen.鈥�

A number of factors created the unmanageable 鈥渟urge鈥� in enforcement cases that buried the division as it was trying to cope with the pandemic-related staffing challenges.

The summer鈥檚 heavy monsoon, for example, required code enforcers to mediate a number of complaints related to storm damage. More homelessness activity also demanded code enforcement to disperse camps blocking city rights-of-way, while increased levels of construction required long-term case processing.

The number of cases in 2021 is on track to be higher than it has been in the past three years, though it may have been more manageable if an earlier plan to protect against the recent overload problem had been successful.

City officials developed an approach in 2017 that tasked community service officers, who work for the police department, with handling weeds or junked car cases. Such complaints represented a fifth of the division鈥檚 cases this year, but the plan failed because of separate staffing issues in the TPD.

鈥淭hat was one of those ideas where it was a great idea, but what ended up happening was those resources, under my direction and approval, were deployed to police to help sure up some of the staffing issues they were having on their end,鈥� said City Manager Michael Ortega.

蜜柚直播鈥檚 code enforcement office already handles more cases with fewer employees than other major cities in 蜜柚直播 and across the country.

Both Phoenix and Glendale have separate offices that handle long-term building safety cases. City code enforcers in Austin handle those cases but have nearly five times more inspectors per-capita than 蜜柚直播.

To make matters worse here, about half of 蜜柚直播鈥檚 current code enforcement staff is set to retire in the 鈥渘ext few years.鈥� De La Torre said it鈥檚 going to be a 鈥渂ig hit鈥� because the division will lose a tremendous amount of experienced employees in such a small period of time.

鈥淭his is critical because of the magnitude of the scope of the work, not only in terms of attending to normal priority calls, but high-priority and emergency calls,鈥� said De La Torre. 鈥淚f we don鈥檛 shore up ourselves, we can certainly put ourselves and a lot of citizens at risk. That鈥檚 why we want to make sure that we do our best to maintain good staffing levels.鈥�

A plan to fix

City staff presented a plan to address the code enforcement problem at Tuesday鈥檚 city council meeting. The strategy focuses on addressing the current caseload, shortening the case process to prevent buildup, and taking steps to squash violations proactively.

The division is onboarding two temporary customer service clerks who will process the 1,400 backlogged complaints, a step that needs to happen before a case can even be created. Five more inspectors will also be hired to handle the excess cases as quickly as possible.

Funding is available for those positions, according to a city memorandum.

鈥淭he intent is to infuse a few customer service representatives to make sure that we can process those through our system,鈥� said De La Torre. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 the initial step to be able to get caught up in terms of those outstanding cases in a relatively short period of time.鈥�

The division will speed up the case process by taking measures to work around the court system when possible, which could reduce case times by months in some instances.

For example, officials hope to use a 鈥渞einspection fee鈥� to prompt residents to fix small violations before they have to go to court. De La Torre said the fee was previously abolished, but that it is necessary to avoid drawn-out cases over small issues.

A 鈥渜uick response team鈥� is another strategy that will be used to speed up the process. Team members will identify certain code violations, notify the owner and then enter the property after 30 days to resolve the problem.

The process does not require the court鈥檚 involvement, and the city can recollect any money spent during the process after the case is closed.

Proactive efforts will include the revival of the 鈥淏ush and Bulk Program.鈥� The Code Enforcement Division previously picked up bulk materials from residents twice a year under the initiative, which helped prevent future code violations from occurring.

The program relied on prison inmates to do the heavy lifting, however, and it was discontinued as a COVID-19 mitigation measure.

鈥淚f we know that we鈥檙e going to be there twice a year, we can really create a plan or approach where we鈥檙e addressing a lot of the community a neighborhood needs on a proactive basis,鈥� De La Torre said.

He added that during those proactive sweeps, staffers can interact with community members to address issues that may otherwise be added to the code enforcement caseload later on.

蜜柚直播 is partnering with a federal program to help members of the military get jobs in city departments, a move officials hope will combat the severe staffing shortages that have plagued 蜜柚直播 for months.

The program, called DOD SkillBridge, is designed to make it easier for service members to transition into civilian life. It will allow outgoing military personnel to work city jobs for the last 180 days of their service while still being paid by the Department of Defense.

蜜柚直播 officials said the program will allow them to solve two problems at once, all without having to spend a dime: as a program partner, the city can help local veterans while creating a new 鈥減ipeline鈥� of highly skilled candidates to address chronic understaffing in key departments.

City Council members unanimously approved the partnership Tuesday. It was part of a larger plan to address the staffing crisis, which has affected city services ranging from public safety to fire fighting to code inspection.

The motion also included a plan to recruit military family members and at-risk youth. Those groups are not included in the DOD SkillBridge program.

鈥淭hey鈥檙e an amazing untapped resource here in the community that I think we can be tapping into for the benefit of the service members and their families, as well as our own workforce and community,鈥� said Vice Mayor Nikki Lee, who spearheaded the federal partnership.

Lee, an Air Force veteran, said 蜜柚直播 is in a prime location to reap the benefits of the program because of the estimated 16,000 active service members who are stationed at local military institutions.

It is not yet clear how many candidates will actually apply, but the city is taking measures to attract as many applicants as possible.

Officials will hire a 鈥渞ecruiter liaison鈥� who can work with outside groups to find eligible individuals. The city also plans to form partnerships with other community organizations as part of its overall staffing strategy.

鈥淥ne of the common themes that I heard from listening to how organizations implemented SkillBridge was that in order for this to be successful, you have to have that liaison,鈥� said Lee, who spent a year developing the proposal. 鈥淵ou have to have that program coordinator, that point person to make sure this is successful.鈥�

Officials said candidates will offer a variety of skills that could make them eligible for spots in some of 蜜柚直播鈥檚 most understaffed offices, like the Information Technology Department. About a fifth of IT positions were vacant as of October because of an insufficient pool of candidates.

National data also suggests that the understaffed 蜜柚直播 Police Department could be a draw for many ex-military members. Veterans currently occupy 19% of law enforcement positions across the country.

Applicants who do not have the necessary qualifications right off the bat could receive on-the-job training and skill development opportunities under the city鈥檚 plan.

The approach will involve an expansion of 蜜柚直播鈥檚 tuition reimbursement program to include certifications. The city will pay for an employee鈥檚 training in exchange for a three-year work commitment after they graduate.

鈥淚 think that is such an important component,鈥� said Jeff Yates, 蜜柚直播鈥檚 business services director. 鈥淓ven if they come to us with some base skills, even in that military transition program, we want to be sure we can equip them to be a long-term city employee.鈥�

Skill development opportunities will also be made available to military family members and at-risk youth as part of 蜜柚直播鈥檚 overall staffing strategy.

City officials have not said how they will fund the new positions for ex-military members beyond the six-month period that鈥檚 paid for by DOD SkillBridge. They also have not released a plan for long-term retention of those employees.

Those details will be discussed during the next council meeting Nov. 23.

The city of 蜜柚直播 is facing significant staffing vacancies in departments that provide crucial services ranging from park maintenance to 911 assistance.

The issues aren鈥檛 new, or exclusive to 蜜柚直播, but they are severe in some of the city鈥檚 departments:

More than a third of positions are vacant at the Parks and Recreation Department and the Public Safety Communications Department 鈥� where 蜜柚直播鈥檚 911 operators work.

About a fifth of the positions in Information Technology and the General Services Department are unfilled.

12% of the 蜜柚直播 Police Department鈥檚 positions are either vacant or occupied by trainees who can鈥檛 be sent out to work in the community yet.

City officials said the shortages have been ongoing for years and are driven by a variety of factors including a lack of qualified candidates, which is a problem across the country, and difficulty getting the word out about open positions. The city has a workforce of about 3,300 positions.

Understaffed city departments have turned to alternative methods to fill gaps in service 鈥� like having existing employees pick up the slack or hiring contractors 鈥� which aren鈥檛 always effective where staffing is needed most.

The impact on residents can be as serious as not getting timely help during an emergency. The Public Safety Communications Department鈥檚 overstretched staff, for example, struggles to answer 911 calls fast enough to meet the national standard.

鈥淚f we are not fast on those true emergent calls, the outcomes are pretty bad,鈥� said Sharon McDonough, the interim director of the department. 鈥淭here鈥檚 a victim on the other end of that line who鈥檚 not getting the help they need.鈥�

A new plan to address the issue was proposed by City Manager Michael Ortega last week that would center around identifying hard-to-fill positions, and developing a strategy to more effectively market and recruit for those open jobs.

But the untested plan also threatens to take funding away from an earlier strategy that鈥檚 being used to keep the shortage from getting worse.

Filling difficult positions

The first part of Ortega鈥檚 plan is to reorganize empty positions based on whether a city department has been looking for candidates to fill them.

Positions that haven鈥檛 been actively recruited for more than a year will be moved out of their departments and 鈥減arked鈥� in a general government category. The city will discuss funding those positions in next year鈥檚 budget, and some might be eliminated.

The second and most central piece of the proposed plan is to identify 鈥渉ard-to-fill鈥� positions and take a more involved approach to filling them.

Open jobs will be considered hard-to-fill after two failed attempts by the department to recruit a candidate for the positions, which often exist in specialized areas 鈥� including communications and law enforcement, as well as IT 鈥� where city officials said they鈥檝e had trouble finding qualified candidates.

鈥淭rying to find skilled positions is just becoming more of a challenge,鈥� said Pat Tapia, the deputy director of the Environmental and General Services Department. 鈥淭his has been going on for years. The staffing was actually even pre-COVID, you were starting to see within our industry that staffing was just becoming more and more tough to fill positions.鈥�

The City Manager鈥檚 Office will work with the department directors to nail-down why they鈥檝e been unsuccessful, which will involve reviewing things like the required qualifications, the interview process and how the position was marketed.

City officials also said they鈥檙e using a consultant who will help develop recruitment strategies and assist city staff in advertising the position so candidates know it鈥檚 available, which is another issue that has made filling vacancies difficult.

鈥淲e are working directly with the departments, we鈥檙e working with outside vendors as well on recruitments,鈥� Ortega said during Tuesday鈥檚 coucil meeting. 鈥淚t really is a more holistic view of the need for us to put emphasis on that future chemistry, that future environment, which we can then sell on the open market for people to want to stay here and want to work for us.鈥�

Other possible changes include speeding up the long hiring process, which can cause the city to lose candidates to private sector competitors, according to officials.

Pay raises have helped

City officials raised the salaries of existing workers earlier this year in order to make the pay more competitive, an action that brought salaries for positions like communications staff and police officers up to a market-level.

McDonough credits the pay raise for her department鈥檚 vacancy rate decrease, which dropped from 45% to 34% in just a few months.

鈥淥ne of the factors was the pay,鈥� said McDonough. 鈥淲e were well below market and that was corrected early this year and we鈥檙e now at a more marketable pay structure and scale to be an attractive job option.鈥�

Those pay increases were funded by dollars the city saved by not filling vacant positions, however.

The strategy was designed to retain employees or fill recent vacancies by making the position more appealing, not necessarily to address the issue on a broader scale that would lead to full staffing.

鈥淲hat that does is it basically precludes me from being fully staffed within the current budget,鈥� Ortega said. 鈥淭hat sounds like a negative, but it actually isn鈥檛. It鈥檚 a more efficient use of dollars.鈥�

Pay raises are an efficient use of extra money that isn鈥檛 being used to fund unfilled positions, but that multimillion dollar surplus will no longer be available if officials succeed in fully staffing their offices.

The new plan presents the possibility that officials will have to choose between pay raises for employees 鈥� a solution that has been necessary to maintain staff levels 鈥� and being able to fund the positions needed to fully staff government offices.

Despite the conflict, Ortega said there鈥檚 funding flexibility that will allow officials to deal with the issue if it arises.

鈥淚t would be a challenge, but if it does happen I built in a safety net within the budget,鈥� Ortega said. 鈥淚鈥檝e actually made assumptions about that in a very conservative manner to say, 鈥榣ook, if we鈥檙e able to fill these positions here are strategies for how we fund those market adjustments.鈥欌��

Managing shortages

For now, understaffed departments need to continue providing crucial services despite the lack of permanent staff to carry out every office function.

Department directors have employed different strategies to keep their offices above water, including the use of overtime and other staffing models that require existing employees to fill gaps in service.

The strategy can help get the job done when necessary, but McDonough said it can leave employees burned out and even cause some to leave because of the intense workload.

鈥淲e鈥檙e happy when we can get enough bodies to fill the seats to have critical staffing complete, but what that means is our employees can鈥檛 get vacation time, their breaks are shorter and it鈥檚 just pressure all day long,鈥� she said. 鈥淭here鈥檚 no good down time, which then contributes to that vicious cycle of I鈥檓 going to resign because my job is too hard.鈥�

McDonough has also used temporary workers, or contractors, to fill vacancy-related gaps. She said temps have provided 鈥済reat鈥� service and answered thousands of 911 calls during her time as the interim director. Still, contractors come with their own set of problems depending on the situation. They can be expensive, lack familiarity with the work environment and are unable to fill the service needs in certain departments.

The police department, for example, can鈥檛 hire temporary workers to make up for it鈥檚 shortage of sworn officers, which is about 12% when trainees who can鈥檛 be deployed in the community are taken into account. As of mid-September, 78 officers had already left the police force this year, and the department鈥檚 monthly rate of loss is on track to be about 50% higher than usual. Department officials could not be reached to explain the loss of officers.

Given the lack of qualified candidates that鈥檚 driving some of the shortages, those recent vacancies could be difficult to fill until the broader issue is addressed.

鈥淭here just aren鈥檛 enough people out there that have the skillsets or the personalities to do those jobs,鈥� Ortega said about a lack of qualified candidates for departments like police.

Photos: Congress Street scenes, 蜜柚直播, ca. 1950s

Street scenes, 蜜柚直播, 1950s

Street scenes, 蜜柚直播, 1950s

Street scenes, 蜜柚直播, 1950s

Street scenes, 蜜柚直播, 1950s

Street scenes, 蜜柚直播, 1950s

Street scenes, 蜜柚直播, 1950s

Street scenes, 蜜柚直播, 1950s

Street scenes, 蜜柚直播, 1950s

Street scenes, 蜜柚直播, 1950s

Street scenes, 蜜柚直播, 1950s

Street scenes, 蜜柚直播, 1950s

Street scenes, 蜜柚直播, 1950s