The City Council decided on Tuesday that Long Beach voters will vote on three local measures this November regarding utility taxes, City departments and commissions.
The items have gone through months of public meetings and modifications, though the City Council hearing proved residents remain divided on the issues. City councilmembers unanimously approved each measure to be entered into the ballot for the general election on Nov. 5.
California residents have until Oct. 21 to register to vote, and can do so online.
The council added three local measures:
- Whether Long Beach will remove a 5% tax exemption for two local power plants
- Whether the City will combine the Civic Service and Human Resources Departments into one hiring department
- To reduce terms for the Harbor Commission and Utility Commission to a maximum of three terms of four years each
This article breaks down the ballot measure regarding the City restructuring departments in order to change its hiring process.
Restructuring Long Beach’s City Employee Hiring Process
Following multiple meetings with city labor union groups, City departments and the Civil Service Commission, the Long Beach City Council voted to add a measure to the ballot that, if passed, will drastically change the City’s hiring process.
The measure includes several changes to City departments and hiring regulations:
- Combining the Civil Service Department and Human Resources Department into one hiring department.
- Implementing classified hiring preferences for Long Beach residents, students from local colleges and universities, current employees and internships/apprenticeships related to the position they’re applying to.
- Establishing an independent Civil Service Employee Right and Appeals Commission which would be in charge of resolving complaints regarding civil service rules and making final decisions on employee disciplinary appeals.
Applicants who qualify for veteran preferences in the City are also eligible to receive these local preferences if passed. All applicants must meet the minimum job requirements for positions, and can qualify for 10 points maximum with the local preference system.
City staff predict the changes will require additional funding if passed, but are still evaluating the amount required. Long Beach has set aside $250,000 in one-time funds to hire a third party to help with the transition, which would include rewriting a portion of the City’s Charter. Long Beach has already set $1.4 million aside for election costs so far.
Why Was this Item Introduced?
The City of Long Beach currently employs over 6,000 civic service employees across 23 departments, according to a chief of labor relations hiring brochure released this year. According to City documents, Long Beach has a citywide employee vacancy rate of 22%, with some departments as high as 40%.
Currently, the Human Resources Department is in charge of oversight and recruitment of unclassified City positions, which makes up roughly 40% of Long Beach’s workforce. The Civil Service Department is responsible for the oversight and recruitment of classified positions; the remaining 60% of the City’s workforce.
The two departments conduct their own job marketing and outreach efforts, are responsible for implementing its own policies and hiring procedures and have their own hiring websites. City staff reports have called the process “outdated” and “redundant.”
Multiple City departments have stated that it takes them seven months to a year in order to fill a vacant position.
The Back and Forth
The Long Beach City Council unanimously supported this item. The City Council has said they aim to bring the recruitment and hiring process for City jobs down to 90 days and believe these changes will accomplish that.
About half the residents who spoke at Tuesday’s meeting supported the item specifically for its local preference aspect.
“Our students are struggling to find stability after college. I have friends of mine that just graduated last May and are in that reality right now,” said Luis Ortiz, a student at Cal State Long Beach. “ … We cannot afford to wait another eight months to be hired so we can put food on our tables.”
Multiple members of the Civil Service Commission and residents spoke against the item, saying it will reduce the role of the commission, resulting in less equity among job candidates and a lack of oversight in departments.
Long Beach voters denied a nearly identical measure in 2007, citing concerns that it would “reduce employee protections” and dismantle the employee merit system. Members of the Civil Service Commission said they were not allowed to make their own recommendations on how to make this measure more equitable.
“I would really like you to hold this over and let the commission be a part of whatever is the end result. We know what needs to be changed better than anybody,” Civil Service Commissioner Nicki Love said.
The Civil Service Commission has been against the item and voiced their opposition to the council multiple times over the past year, citing concerns of nepotism and lack of accountability in the hiring process, which the commission is there to prevent. If the item is passed, the commission will become the Civil Service Employee Right and Appeals Commission and will have radically different job duties.
“This will not necessarily result in improvement if the elements of fairness and trust are in question,” said Long Beach resident Herman Long.
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