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Q&A
Discussion on DOT staffing challenges and hiring processes
3:42:21
ยท
6 min
Council Member Restler expresses concern about DOT's 10.6% vacancy rate and questions the efficiency of the hiring process, particularly OMB's approval timeline. Commissioner Rodriguez and Executive Deputy Commissioner Ochoa respond to these concerns, discussing hiring practices and support from the mayor's office.
- Debate over the impact of the vacancy rate on DOT's ability to execute projects
- Discussion of OMB's role in the hiring process and approval timelines
- Explanation of DOT's current staffing situation and efforts to fill positions
Lincoln Restler
3:42:21
Thank you very much.
3:42:22
That's very kind of you, commissioner.
3:42:24
It's always great to have you back in the city council.
3:42:27
And thank you, chair Brooks Powers, for your extraordinary endurance on what I think is one of the longer hearing days of the year.
3:42:35
I'll try to stick with you as long as I can.
3:42:37
I have a few questions for you.
3:42:39
The first though I just wanna dig in on is hiring.
3:42:42
I'm really concerned.
3:42:43
This is I think, commissioner, I I raised I probably raised the same issues with you every year.
3:42:47
I'm consistent if nothing else.
3:42:49
I'm deep I believe in the agency.
3:42:51
I'm grateful for my partnership with DOT.
3:42:53
I think that the people that you put around you have and the team that you built has done a good a good job.
3:42:59
I probably annoy Keith Bray more than any person in the city of New York, and I'm grateful that he returns my phone calls.
3:43:07
And and and the InterGov team and everybody, like, top down, I'm grateful for your partnership.
3:43:12
But you can't do your job and execute in all the ways that you want if you don't have the staff.
3:43:17
So my understanding from looking over the the data is that we're at about a 10 plus percent, 10.6% vacancy rate.
3:43:24
Is that right?
3:43:25
So I will tell you, two weeks ago, we were sitting here and the first deputy director at OMB testified that OMB is getting back to agencies in a two week time period to approve hiring.
3:43:41
When you send candidates to OMB for approval, are you getting that?
3:43:44
Are you getting responses in two weeks to be able to move forward with candidates?
Ydanis Rodriguez
3:43:50
I think that there's nobody else in this body that knows City Hall better than you, council member.
3:43:55
I look, I I all have to navigate with our reality with the staffing, you know, and and there's not anything different on mayor Adams administration from Di Blasio to Bloomberg to Giuliani when it came to staffing.
3:44:11
Do we a two
Lincoln Restler
3:44:11
for one?
3:44:12
Do you have a two for one in place right now?
Ydanis Rodriguez
3:44:14
No.
3:44:14
Thanks to Mayor Eric Adams and Jack OMB, we have the liftoff freezing for engineer.
3:44:20
So I
Lincoln Restler
3:44:20
think So engineers are not subject to two for one, but overwhelmingly, the vacancies in your agency are subject for two for one hiring.
3:44:26
So to say that we don't have something different than previous administrations, that was not the policy for the overwhelming portion of the de Blasio administration, and yet it has remained in place under this mayor despite the surplus we have in place for this year and So hiring has been held up by OMB at every single turn.
3:44:43
I just would like a timeline.
3:44:44
Just to ask the question plainly, what's the approximate timeline it takes for what you send the campaign to OMB
Ydanis Rodriguez
3:44:49
Again, I have proof.
3:44:50
Is answering the first question.
3:44:51
What I say on the staffing is about definitely we have a lot of support from Eric Garland, from Jack OMB and his deputy commissioner OMB.
3:45:01
I feel that, you know, with the limited resource city that we are, we've been getting enough resources for us to do our job.
Lincoln Restler
3:45:09
I I appreciate that.
3:45:10
I can point to some metrics in the in the PMMR where I think DOT would like to do better around improving safety on our streets.
3:45:19
I know that the intentions are right, but you can't do it without the staff.
3:45:23
A 10 plus percent vacancy rate is not an ideal scenario.
3:45:25
You have that head count for a reason.
3:45:27
I'm just looking to understand, when you send a candidate to OMB, what's the average timeline it takes to get that candidate approved?
Ydanis Rodriguez
3:45:33
And and we go case by case, and and and we had a great team, again, led by Paul Ochoa, your good friend, and all the division like
Lincoln Restler
3:45:42
I love Paul.
3:45:42
I'm not criticizing Paul.
3:45:44
I'm trying to get an answer on how long it takes to get OMB approval.
Ydanis Rodriguez
3:45:48
So so I can pass that one to Paul, but I can say council member Lincoln, we are in the same pre pandemic vacancy today.
3:45:57
So definitely the work have been done, the additional funding that we have at DOT from 1,100,000,000.0 that we have in '22 to 1,500,000,000.0 that we have today, definitely speak to how much we've been getting support of Mayor Eric Adams for us to do our job.
Paul Ochoa
3:46:14
Yeah.
3:46:15
Thanks for the question council member and thanks for the advocacy.
3:46:18
I was mentioning to the chair that we do work with OMB and city hall to make sure that our priority hires are approved.
3:46:24
I was just talking about the seasonal hires.
3:46:26
We brought in about 600 seasonal hires just this past Monday.
3:46:30
Those were improved on time to make sure that we meet our
Lincoln Restler
3:46:32
Outside of seasonal hires, outside of priority hires, just for the regular person that's working at DOT that we're trying to get in to fix street lights to get issues resolved in a timely fashion, what's the average timeline it takes when you send a name to OMB?
3:46:48
Is it two weeks?
3:46:49
Is it a month?
3:46:50
Is it six months?
3:46:51
Are you tracking it?
Paul Ochoa
3:46:52
We work with them.
3:46:53
It could take a couple months.
Lincoln Restler
3:46:55
Right.
3:46:55
So I just it's it's just that I have never heard an agency ever tell me that they're getting responses from OMB in two weeks, which is what OMB testified to a couple weeks ago.
3:47:05
We want to help.
3:47:06
Allocate the headcount for a reason.
3:47:08
We believe that that's what DOT should be staffed at.
3:47:11
There's been a huge hiring push over these three years with hiring halls and different things, or there was, I think they've all died.
3:47:16
But there had been a big hiring push earlier in the administration.
3:47:19
And yet, to your point commissioner, we're still in the same place from a headcount standpoint.
3:47:23
We haven't actually addressed the vacancy rate.
3:47:25
We need help.
3:47:26
And you're doing the best you can to identify candidates, but if it takes two, three, four, five months to get OMB's response, people don't wait.
3:47:33
If they can get other jobs, they get other jobs, because who has the ability to wait for a job for five or six months from the time you get an offer to the time you actually can start?
3:47:41
And OMB is clearly holding us up to save money and pinch pennies at the expense of DOT doing your job at the level that we all expect.
3:47:50
And these are the work you do is so important.
3:47:53
I believe in the agency.
3:47:54
I believe in the leadership that you have in place, and I am deeply disappointed that we continue to struggle with a 10% vacancy that is undermining the efficacy of the agency.
3:48:03
I have talked for too long.
3:48:04
I will see if the the chair will allow me to do a second round because I I would love to talk about some substantive issues as well.
3:48:09
But thank But,
Ydanis Rodriguez
3:48:10
yeah, but there is there is cases where we've been approving it two weeks.
Lincoln Restler
3:48:13
I hear you.
3:48:14
Priority hires, seasonal hires is different.
Ydanis Rodriguez
3:48:16
Not only seasonal.
3:48:16
Not only seasonal.
3:48:18
Probably.
3:48:18
We have many cases where we've been
Selvena N. Brooks-Powers
3:48:20
So because it is your birthday because TLC is here waiting and we're a little behind, I will allow you to ask one more question for your
Lincoln Restler
3:48:25
birthday.
3:48:25
One more.
Paul Ochoa
3:48:26
Oh gosh.
3:48:27
I have two.
Selvena N. Brooks-Powers
3:48:28
Alright.
3:48:28
You get two.
3:48:29
One for the That is I'm not gonna be nice in the next hearing though.
Chris Banks
3:48:33
That is