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How the city is looking to fill upward of 25 CDL solid waste, bus operator positions

City of Columbia refuse collector Ian Brooks tosses trash bags in February 2022 into a trash truck in south Columbia.
City of Columbia refuse collector Ian Brooks tosses trash bags in February 2022 into a trash truck in south Columbia.

Staffing levels at the City of Columbia are starting to have a greater impact on city services, particularly in the city's solid waste utility and its transit program, Go CoMo.

Bus routes are expected to compress from six to three starting Aug. 1 and curbside pickup of recycling was suspended May 17 through at least June 20, with both citing staffing issues as the cause. In the case of the bus routes, operators have worked under mandatory overtime for nearly two years.

More: Columbia bus route compression starts in August with no clear end date

The hope is combining routes will relieve some of the pressure and required overtime faced by operators. Trash pickups were not limited, but because of staffing the biweekly pickup of recycling had to cease temporarily.

The City of Columbia has a staffing deficit of 256 positions across all city departments as of May 13.

So, what is being done at the city to bring in more staff? Quite a bit, explained Sydney Olsen, city spokesperson in an email to the Tribune.

The city is utilizing multiple tools at its disposal for employee recruitment, she wrote, including the city website, job boards, radio and social media ads, flyers and attending job fairs, among others.

City staff most recently attended the Connecting the Community Job Fair on May 18 at the Columbia Mall.

"City representatives made contact with (more than 100) potential applicants. It is too soon to know how many of those applicants will result in hires, but we are hopeful to bring new staff onboard soon as a result of the event," Olsen wrote. "The event was a great opportunity for the city to meet applicants and connect with members of the community."

The staffing situation with the solid waste utility does not have a simple solution. Employees within public works, which includes Go CoMo, and utilities, which includes solid waste, often must have a commercial driver's license.

"Currently, there are 15 vacant Refuse Collector/Senior Refuse Collector positions. Four of the filled positions are underfilled as Packers which do not require a CDL, which is the equivalent of having 19 vacant positions," wrote Matt Nestor, utilities department spokesperson.

Columbia city bus driver Javon Jones waits for passengers to board last April at the Wabash Bus Station at 126 N. Tenth St. The city bus system is experiencing a driver shortage leading to a route compression starting in August.
Columbia city bus driver Javon Jones waits for passengers to board last April at the Wabash Bus Station at 126 N. Tenth St. The city bus system is experiencing a driver shortage leading to a route compression starting in August.

The bus operator shortage is at 13, which requires CDLs, but the department is able to hire people as paratransit van operators, which do not require a CDL. These paratransit drivers then receive CDL training to eventually be able to also operate fixed-route buses.

Hiring 13 CDL bus operators would return bus service to "45-minute service intervals," Olsen wrote. "Because sustained overtime can exert a physical and mental toll on people, our goal is to reduce the number of necessary overtime hours in order to improve morale and retention."

The city also is in conversation with Moberly Area Community College regarding a CDL program.

"The advantage this partnership could provide (is) another avenue for us to recruit drivers. MACC classroom training would also take some of the pressure off of city staff, who presently administer in-class training to drivers," Olsen wrote. "... The city pays for everything associated with training drivers for obtaining their CDL except the cost of the permit itself."

For the city to resume some form of curbside recycling, five to 10 more CDL staff need to be hired, Nestor wrote. If the city only were to hire five people, it still would mean utilizing those from a temporary staffing agency, if even available.

"In recent weeks, temporary staffing agencies have had a difficult time in fulfilling our staffing requests," Nestor wrote. "Therefore, the best way for the Solid Waste Utility to ensure that we are providing a reliable service for our residential curbside customers is to transition to a collection operation that is not reliant upon temporary staff agency support."

This is why solid waste needs upward of 10 CDL staff to continue curbside recycling.

Another issue affecting staffing levels across the entire city is pay and employee classification, e.g. entry-level, manager and supervisor. The city is undergoing a classification and compensation study, with early results being shared with the Columbia City Council in March.

More: Columbia starts to hone in on updated pay structure for staff after roughly yearlong study

The major takeaway from that meeting was that minimum base pay across all positions is below market averages and that when looking at benchmarks, employees at the midpoint also were being paid below market averages.

"The primary goal of the classification and compensation study is to ensure that the classification and compensation system is accurate, equitable and market sensitive," Olsen wrote. "A properly designed and maintained classification and compensation system may enhance efforts to recruit and retain a highly qualified workforce."

Implementation of final recommendations from the city's consultant Segal is expected to coincide with the start of the 2024 fiscal year Oct. 1, she added.

Charles Dunlap covers local government, community stories and other general subjects for the Tribune. You can reach him at cdunlap@columbiatribune.com or @CD_CDT on Twitter. Subscribe to support vital local journalism.

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: City using all tools available to fill solid waste, bus operator jobs