SFUSD reports progress on payroll backlog but says staffing gaps slow fixes

The San Francisco Unified School District provided the board an operational update on the payroll 'state of emergency' tied to the Empower timekeeping and payroll system.

District staff said the command center and consultants have narrowed root causes into 15 "work packages" and prioritized fixes that will have the largest impact: interface time entry, leave management and employee payroll data management. A presenter from A&M reported the district is projected to have about 1,500 unresolved support tickets by April and said improvements in case management have accelerated closing of simpler tickets.

Superintendent Wayne said the district set three near‑term indicators of success: fewer than 25 payroll errors per payroll cycle, resolving new pay issues within one cycle, and halving the ticket backlog over a 90‑day window (January 15 to April 15). Command‑center leads acknowledged those goals but cautioned that more challenging tickets remain and interdependencies extend remediation timelines.

Staff also reported a recruitment shortfall for positions that support payroll, HR and technology. Dr. Candy Clark said the district began with an active recruitment plan to fill 44 positions to stabilize operations, has filled 12 so far and still lists about 32 vacancies; temporary staffing and consultant pools are being used to mitigate the gap.

Commissioners pressed for clearer timelines and for staff to identify which fixes can move forward without overtaxing current personnel. The administration said it will provide updated metrics on ticket closure speed, backlog reduction and staffing fills in future board updates.

No specific dollar amounts were introduced in the presentation; the board asked staff to include follow‑up details on recruiting timelines and the planned milestones for taking Empower out of the state of emergency.