JEFFERSON CITY — With job vacancies still plaguing many state agencies, Gov. Mike Parson’s administration is planning to give state workers a bonus if they help hire more employees.
Beginning in January, workers in the various state departments can qualify for $250 or $500 if they successfully refer a new employee to the state workforce.
According to documents reviewed at a recent meeting of Parson’s cabinet, human resources directors were briefed on the idea Oct. 5 and the governor’s budget office is working to include funding for the program in the fiscal year beginning next July.
A full cost for the program was not immediately available.
The bonus program is the latest attempt to bolster the depleted ranks of the state payroll, which has been buffeted by high turnover rates and low pay.
People are also reading…
But, even after raising wages for rank-and-file state workers by more than 20% since 2019, Parson aides continue to scramble to bring employees on board.
In addition to raising salaries, officials have lowered hiring standards, allowing more people without college degrees to get jobs.
At the Missouri Department of Public Safety, scholarships are being made available for youth seeking jobs in law enforcement.
The administration also has held more job fairs and is planning one for Nov. 9 at the Marriott St. Louis West hotel, 660 Maryville Centre Drive, in west St. Louis County.
Like other job fairs, officials are conducting onsite interviews and offering jobs on the spot, if feasible.
At the Department of Corrections, where turnover has resulted in some prison wings being closed because of a lack of staffing, the state has boosted salaries by $174.8 million since 2018, the administration said.
The most recent wage hike of 8.7% has helped. According to prison officials, nearly 240 new officers were hired in the first seven months of the year.
To counter vacant positions, the department is deploying mobile teams of guards to address staffing woes at individual prison facilities. Employees on the teams receive pay raises and more flexible hours.
Some agencies are finding success in recruiting workers for jobs outside of the capital city region.
The Missouri Department of Mental Health plans to move some operations out of its psychiatric hospital in nearby Fulton to more urban areas of the state to account for a lack of workers.
Similarly, the state auditor is attempting to open more work space in St. Louis and Springfield.
“(H)aving staff geographically dispersed around the state saves travel costs, and allows the office to be more nimble in responding to local concerns regarding fraud, corruption, and inefficiency. Additionally, in recent years the (auditor) has had more success recruiting in the branch offices than in Jefferson City,” budget documents note.
