REMARKS
Council Member Carmen De La Rosa opens hearing on municipal workforce recruitment and retention
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3 min
Council Member Carmen De La Rosa, chair of the Committee on Civil Service and Labor, opens a hearing on recruitment and retention challenges in New York City's municipal workforce. She introduces the legislation to be discussed and outlines the key issues facing the city's public workforce.
- Elevated attrition rates in key agencies, particularly in public safety roles
- Staffing shortages in emergency services and increased competition from the private sector
- Legislation to be discussed includes civil service exam fee waivers, eliminating subminimum wage, and contracting with laundry companies that respect workers' rights
Carmen N. De La Rosa
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Thank you.
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Good afternoon, everyone.
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I'm council member Carmen de la Rosa, chair of the Committee on Civil Service and Labor.
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Welcome to today's hearing where we will be exploring the city's ongoing efforts to address challenges in recruitment and retention within our municipal workforce.
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We will also be hearing the following legislation, intro 671, sponsored by myself in relation to providing civil service examination fee waivers for high schoolers and first time applicants, resol 333 sponsored by public advocate Williams in relation to eliminating the subminimum wage for employees based on their disability or age and reso 598, sponsored by myself, in relation to the city's health care institutions contracting with lawn laundry companies that respect workers' rights.
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Our municipal workforce is the backbone of New York City.
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Everyday, hardworking and dedicated employees provide essential services across all 5 boroughs, ensuring that our city operates smoothly.
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We, all these public servants, are deep gratitude for their tireless commitment to keeping New York running.
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However, the city's public war workforce has been contending with several intersecting personal challenges.
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We have observed elevated rates of attrition at many key agencies, particularly in public safety, including correction officers and uniformed police officers, as well as call dispatchers, school safety agent, and school safety agents.
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Staffing shortages are also impacting EMS, EMT units, and public hospital emergency departments, leading to delays in emergency care.
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In addition to those challenges, the city faces increased competition from private sector employers who often offer attractive benefits and flexible work environments and recruit from the same pool of skilled qualified candidates.
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When compounded, these issues threaten the city's ability to maintain a high level of service New Yorkers rely on every day.
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Today, we look forward to hearing from DCAS and OLR regarding their efforts to recruit and retain staff, as well as their role in collaborating with agencies to make sure that they are providing civil service examinations for positions experiencing high vacancy rates.
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We will seek their feedback on legislation before the committee, particularly for intro 671.
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We hope to identify some key positions that are facing challenges to retention and to explore actionable strategies to improve access to the city's employment.
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Together, we must work to strengthen the pathways into public service and ensure that the city can continue to deliver for all New Yorkers.
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I'd like to thank our committee staff, senior policy analyst Elizabeth Arts, and legislative counsel Ria Yasawara for their hard work in preparing for today's hearing.
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I'd also like to thank my staff, chief of staff James Burke, deputy chief of staff and legislative director, Keanu Diaz, and communications director, Freda Amelia.
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I would like to recognize that we've been joined by council member Moya on Zoom.
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We will be hearing testimony first from representatives of the administration.
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I now turn to the committee council to administer the oath for the panel of administrative officials, including Katrina Porter, chief human capital officer, Katie Notar, assistant commissioner for workforce operations, Robert Alexander, assistant commissioner for examinations, and Daniel Pollock of OLR.