REMARKS
Lincoln Restler critiques the detrimental impact of budget cuts and staffing challenges on the Department of Citywide Administrative Services (DCAS) and its ability to support New York City agencies
0:39:00
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128 sec
- Restler notes a 22% decrease in DCAS's budgeted headcount over five years.
- He emphasizes that such budget cuts and hiring freezes severely impair DCAS and, by extension, the entire city's operations.
- The council member underscores the necessity of restoring DCAS's headcount to previous levels for improved citywide service delivery.
- Restler criticizes the mayor's administration for these reductions, highlighting their negative effects on New York City's health and safety services.
- He expresses frustration over DCAS's inability to aid other agencies in staffing, attributing this inefficiency to misguided administrative policies.
Lincoln Restler
0:39:00
I just, you know, think it's important to state for the record that the dirt the currency cast account at 2018 is more than 500 positions fewer than the 20 budgeted headcount.
0:39:13
We're talking about a 22% decrease in the Decast budgeted headcount in a 5 year period.
0:39:19
And the fact that you're able to do as much as you can with those cuts is a testament to your abilities and the abilities of your team, but we can and should be doing so much more if you were simply staffed the right way.
0:39:31
And 7 rounds of budget cuts and multiple hiring freezes have had a just terrible impact on agencies like DCAS that do so much for the city of New York.
0:39:41
And I think it's it's worth just underscoring that every city agency relies on DCAS.
0:39:47
Whether it be to lease space or hire workers or procure goods.
0:39:50
They can't do their jobs if you don't have the team in place to help them.
0:39:53
And so you know, I just really wanna underscore the points by council member Schulman that it's critically important that we restore the headcount of decast to previous levels you know, as quickly as possible.
Lynn C. Schulman
0:40:06
Sharon, just with that, I just wanna ask one quick.
0:40:08
Are you still doing hiring holes?
Dawn M. Pinnock
0:40:11
The hiring halls were paused during the hiring freeze.
0:40:14
And so what we've done is we've documented all the lessons learned.
0:40:18
We created a playbook.
0:40:19
So we've taught every agency how to host its own hiring hall just so that we had a sustainable framework.
0:40:25
We do expect that with the lifting of the hiring freeze that we may provide technical assistance.
0:40:30
But right now, we don't have the staffing per se.
0:40:33
It is very labor intensive, so we expect to help agencies on the sidelines utilizing our necessary
Lincoln Restler
0:40:39
it is infuriating that DeCast doesn't have the staff to be able to help other agency staff up.
0:40:45
Right?
0:40:45
I just I like these cuts that the mayor is insisting on make zero sense and they are hurting the people of the city of New York.
0:40:52
We have lost tens of thousands of workers under his administration.
0:40:56
And we cannot provide the basic services to protect and maintain the health and safety of the people of New York City and that you don't have the staff to help other agencies hire says everything that we need to know about how this mayor is failing the people of New York.