(The Center Square) – Some Alaska departments are facing a shortage of employees due to budget cuts and unfilled vacancy gaps, according to a report by the Legislative Finance Division.
In January 2015, about 89% of vacancies for full-time positions were filled, but there’s been a downward trend, according to a presentation to the Senate Finance Committee on Thursday. In June 2022, the number of filled jobs in state government was 83%, an all-time low, according to Alexei Painter, director of the Legislative Finance Division.
Painter said that as of December 2023, the highest vacancy rate occurs for unemployment insurance technicians in the Department of Labor, with a 37.7% vacancy, a slight improvement over the 2022 vacancy rate of 38.7%. The vacancy rate also improved slightly for public health nurses by 4.5%, reaching a vacancy rate of 33.3%.
The vacancy rates for emergency services dispatchers and child support specialist vacancy rates, while still high, have seen slight improvements over last year’s figures.
Lead food service personnel had the most significant loss, moving from a 19% vacancy rate to a 33.3% vacancy. Vacancy gaps also increased over the last year for human resource technicians, psychiatric nurses, commercial vehicle compliance inspectors, protective services specialists, and mechanic-automotive-advance journey workers, Painter said.
The vacancies can have an impact on the state’s budget. For example, correctional officers earn time-and-a-half pay when they work overtime, according to Painter’s presentation. Senior employees often work overtime instead of more recent hires, which drives up personnel costs.
Services are also disrupted, Painter said. Retirement paperwork has been delayed because of an employee shortage in the Retirement and Benefits Division. According to the presentation, staffing shortages can keep the Alaska Marine Highway System from running a complete ferry schedule.
The situation can be remedied in several ways, including better pay, according to Painter’s presentation. A new salary scheduled for state attorneys raised their pay by 15% in 2022. A competitive salary study led to an increase in public health nurse salaries in 2022.
Departments also use letters of agreement, or LOAs, which offer employees incentives to stay. The Alaska Legislature approves them after a review by the Legislative Finance Division, Painter said. The costs can be covered by money not used because of the vacancies.
The legislature has received 13 LOAs in 24.
But LOAs are not always a solution, according to Painter.
“The Division of Finance had an LOA in FY23 providing bonuses to human resources technicians,” Painter said in his presentation. “In June 2023, the vacancy rate for these positions was 30.4%. The LOA did not continue into FY24. By August 2023, the vacancy rate for these positions was up to 41.1%, and in December it was 46.4%.”
Gov. Mike Dunleavy included bonuses for human resource technicians in his budget.
