Report: Berkeley City Services Hurt By Staff Retention Challenges

BERKELEY, CA -- City staff shortages constrained city services, but the city had no clear strategy to improve retention during an audit period, according to a recently released report by the Berkeley city auditor.

Also according to the report, which was released June 22, more employees left the city than were hired in each year of the audit period, contributing to the staff shortage.

Additional findings of the audit include:

• Employee dissatisfaction made it harder for the city to retain staff.
• Surveyed employees reported dissatisfaction with workloads, professional development opportunities, pay and communication and support from city leadership.
• Instability in Human Resources delayed hiring and impacted internal services. The average time it took to hire new employees increased from 4.9 months in fiscal year 2018 to 7.7 months in fiscal year 2022.
• Telework could benefit the city and help retain some employee, but the current policy is limited.
• The city lacks reliable data to monitor trends and address staff shortages.

The report also recommended potential solutions.

"We recommend that the city establish retention goals, conduct an analysis of staff needed for city services and consider staff capacity around new legislation," the report states in part. "We also recommend that the city take steps to address employee satisfaction and improve the recruiting and hiring process."

"We also recommend that the city expand the telework policy to align with best practices and regularly collect data on employee satisfaction and on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility," the auditor's office wrote.

Berkeley government has faced difficulties retaining employees, which caused staff shortages that limited the city’s ability to provide services to residents. Staff shortages can make workloads for current employees unmanageable, which can drive down morale and worsen employee
retention.

Combined, the issues can lead to an increase in employee errors, a decrease in the quality of services, and an overall increase in the city’s financial risks and other liabilities. The
inability to retain employees can also be costly to the city in the long run, city officials have said, as it may be more expensive to hire and train new employees than it is to retain productive employees.