‘We’re hiring’ … Dougherty County, Albany looking to fill 400 positions

ALBANY — With more than a fifth of Dougherty County’s employee positions unfilled and Albany officials seeking more than 200 workers for the city, there are government jobs to be had in a wide range of positions.

“We’re hiring,” was the message from Dougherty County Administrator Michael McCoy.

Out of 650 budgeted positions with the county, about 132 are unfilled.

Albany has more than 200 job openings, according to Ward IV City Commissioner Chad Warbington.

The city has a half-dozen immediate openings for mechanics in the Fleet Management Department, and the Albany Police Department has 30 entry-level officer positions available.

“If you go to our website today, we have 250, 270 vacant positions,” Warbington said. “There are over 80 positions advertised on our website. Some of them may even be multiple positions within a category.”

The proposed city budget includes a cost of living adjustment of 4.5 percent, and the county also is looking at significantly boosting salaries for the budget year beginning July 1 based on a study conducted to look at salaries and pay for long-term employees.

The city is doing that without raising taxes or using federal COVID-19 relief funds, he said.

The county-funded salary increases last year for police and Emergency Medical Services personnel using some of those federal dollars, and this year’s raises also would be funded with some of that money.

“That’s across the board,” Wargington said of the pay hikes. “With inflation where it’s at, it was imperative we go beyond the typical cost-of-living (raise).”

The positions range from highly skilled jobs with fleet management to laborers.

“We’re down six mechanic positions right now out of a staff of 34, so as you can imagine that’s pretty significant,” Albany Fleet Management Director Pete Bednar said.

And the city isn’t just competing for workers with nearby counties and cities. It has to compete for workers against large auto dealerships and diesel automotive shops in the private sector, he said.

“It’s a difficult situation,” Albany Mayor Bo Dorough said. “It’s not solely with public safety, but it is a challenge with all sectors of employment in the public sector.”

The shortage of workers means some people who are on the job are having to work longer hours, and therefore are under more stress, the mayor said.

“I want to give you the answer that, yes, it’s going to help with pay raises,” he said. “With inflation, it’s offsetting the pay raises. It’s the starting salaries … that’s your recruitment, but you’ve got to continue to be competitive in pay over the course of their entire career. That’s your retention.”

In the current labor market, the county, which raised its minimum wage to $10 from $7.35 several years ago, is finding now that it is competing with employers it normally did not in the past, including fast food and convenience stores, McCoy said.

“We’ve got to be competitive,” Dorough said. “It’s essential we pay our people a fair wage and those at the lower end are paid a living wage.”

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