Civil Service commissioners defend efforts to speed hiring as supervisors press on vacancies and public-safety impacts

The Rules Committee voted unanimously on July 10 to recommend reappointments of Kate Pavetti and Jacqueline Minor to the Civil Service Commission, following extended discussion about the city's hiring backlog and the commission’s post-pandemic review of hiring rules.

Supervisor Asha Safai opened the item by citing a civil grand jury report and expressing concern about the time required to fill critical public-safety and service positions—"vacancies like 90 vacancies within our 911 call center" and more than 150 vacancies in the fire department, he said—arguing the delays were "beginning to really cripple that response system."

Kate Pavetti and Jacqueline Minor described the commission’s post-pandemic review and a listening campaign to gather department-specific data. They said the commission has convened public hearings and meetings with HR offices and large departments to identify bottlenecks; Pavetti noted the commission asked Department of Public Health to report back after hearing testimony showing a prior time-to-hire figure near 140 days and an aim to reduce that to roughly 60 days.

Minor described quarter-to-quarter vacancy tracking and steps to monitor provisional and seasonal hires as short-term measures for critical service positions. Commissioners said they will continue to request more specific reports (including on 9-1-1 hiring) and to evaluate whether procedural rule changes or expanded use of provisional appointments are appropriate.

Committee members thanked the commissioners for their work and voted to strike the word 'reject' from the reappointment motions and forward both reappointments to the full Board as committee reports. Supportive public callers including a former civil service executive and advocates for hiring reforms urged confirmation.

The committee’s unanimous recommendation preserves continuity on the Civil Service Commission while directing the commission to continue oversight of hiring practices and to report back with additional, department-level data and proposed rule changes where necessary.