DeKalb County commissioners appear ready to restore 79 vacant jobs in the sheriff’s department, a sign that other departments also may soon be getting jobs back.
Sheriff Thomas Brown was the first department head to ask for positions to be restored after commissioners abolished all 644 vacant jobs in their budget vote last month.
The commission’s public safety committee Tuesday recommended giving Brown 79 jobs back, nine more than he asked for two weeks ago. If the commission agrees when it votes in two weeks, that would cost about $4.4 million.
“The money is in the department but the positions were abolished,” said Finance Director Joel Gottlieb. “The money is there.”
Still, commissioners have asked for a fiscal note spelling out all costs to accompany the recommendation to restore the jobs.
Other managers and CEO Burrell Ellis have urged the commission restore all but 250 of the vacant jobs. Taking the county’s average pay, benefits and pension costs, the price tag of restoring those 394 jobs is $22 million.
If each department doesn't have the cash, the county could end up dipping into its ebbing reserves to balance the budget.
“My suggestion is we need to clarify all of the positions,” said Commissioner Lee May. “Then we can review that in our budget committee.”
Brown said his department is $1 million in the red on personnel services this year, largely because he has had to rely so much on overtime rather than filling positions. Salaries alone for those managing a jail population of 3,300 daily inmates are actually in the black, he said.
“Our problem will always be trying to get the positions filled, so we don’t have to use overtime to just reach the minimum staffing at the jail,” Brown said. “All of these positions are critical.”
The jobs the committee recommends be restored include 41 jail officers, 13 deputy sheriffs, two sergeants and a lieutenant. Civilian technician jobs make up most of the rest, as well as one manager for the jail’s website.
The police department, animal services operation and 911 center have asked for another 189 jobs be restored. The county has delayed action on those positions while awaiting more information on each department’s budget and potential restructuring.
Holding off on restoring jobs would help the county stabilize finances and also follow recommendations from a 2010 Georgia State study. That study showed DeKalb has twice as many workers as similarly sized Cobb and Gwinnett counties.
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