Arkansas

Approximately 18% of Arkansas’ state positions are vacant, data shows • Arkansas Advocate

Published

1 year ago

December 23, 2024

Approximately 18% of Arkansas’ state positions are vacant, data shows • Arkansas Advocate

Nearly 18% of 66,000 Arkansas executive branch and higher education jobs remained unfilled this year, according to available data.

The Arkansas Department of Veteran Affairs (ADVA) reported the highest percentage of staff vacancies in a single department, according to the Department of Transformation and Shared Services. Of the agency’s 303 total positions, nearly 59% were unfilled as of Dec. 5.

“The vast majority of our vacancies are direct care nursing positions at our two State Veterans Homes,” retired Army Maj. Gen. Kendall Penn, the department secretary, said in a statement. “However, our veteran residents are still getting exceptional care at both homes through a combination of state government-employed nurses and nurses provided by contracted staffing agencies.”

Penn, who was appointed in January 2023, will resign from his position on Dec. 31, 2024. Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders on Dec. 17 named retired Air National Guard Col. Robert Ator II as Penn’s successor.

“[Arkansas] state government continues to face a significant challenge trying to match the market rate for nursing positions, as well as additional ADVA high vacancy and low volume positions, such as those in food service and maintenance,” Penn said. “These challenged areas artificially inflate our overall department vacancy rate.”

Retired Army Maj. Gen. Kendall Penn, the state department secretary of Veteran Affairs. (Courtesy photo)

Penn said the department hopes to reduce its vacancy rate in 2025 using a combination of special compensation recruitment and retention bonuses. Penn also noted competitive salary increases may stem from Arkansas Forward — an initiative from the governor that aims to increase government efficiency — which he said could help with vacancies.

While Veteran Affairs had the highest vacancy rate among departments, the Department of Finance and Administration’s Division of Racing reported a 78% vacancy rate with 11 of its 14 positions empty as of Dec. 5.

But DFA isn’t planning to hire any additional full-time staff to the three positions it already has filled, spokesperson Scott Hardin said.

“The Racing Division’s needs are met in full each year,” Hardin said. “The Division utilizes seasonal, extra-help positions for those that work in live racing for a certain period each year. It allows the state to meet all needs throughout the live racing season. In addition, three full-time employees oversee the day-to-day operation of the division.”

Higher education positions at colleges and universities are also on the state payroll. According to Arkansas Department of Education data from October, Southeast Arkansas Community College reported the highest vacancy rate at 66%. Of the school’s 365 available positions, 243 were vacant.

The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences offers the most positions of any college or university with over 11,000 jobs. Data shows UAMS has one of the lowest vacancy rates among higher education institutions at 8.5%.

‘Arkansas Forward’

In November, Sanders announced a proposed overhaul of the state employee pay plan through the Arkansas Forward initiative, which officials have said aims to improve government efficiency.

Arkansas state employee pay plan overhaul boosts salaries for hard-to-fill jobs

The proposed pay plan would cost an estimated $120 million annually and provide pay raises to 14,539 employees. It would also add two pay table distinctions, professionals and law enforcement and safety, to an existing four classifications: general, information technology, medical professional and senior executive.

The pay plan does not propose decreasing any available jobs, though it would consolidate roughly 2,000 job titles into approximately 800, officials said.

If approved by the Legislature, the pay plan would go into effect in July 2025.

According to a 900-page progress report on Arkansas Forward the governor’s office released on Dec. 16, the whole initiative could save the state $300 million over the next six years by implementing cost-saving measures.

The report suggests that many Arkansas cabinet-level agencies need to upgrade their salary schedules to compete in the job market.

In addition to the employee pay plan, the initiative also calls for the integration of information technology across all state agencies, a centralized state procurement process and renegotiated contracts, the sale of old state vehicles and a reduction to the government’s physical footprint by identifying cost savings in real estate.

The report provides examples of “compensation levers,” or instances in which an employee would receive a bonus based on their performance. The report also recommends one-time annual bonuses for people who “perform above baseline,” and “spot bonuses” that are awarded outside the normal evaluation cycle to employees meeting their performance expectations.

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“I’ve made no secret that I believe that Arkansas’ current state employee pay plan is broken,” Sanders said at a November press conference announcing her proposed pay revamp. “It’s confusing, it doesn’t reward hard work and it’s not recruiting new hires for our most in-demand positions.”

The initiative would increase the entry-level salaries of correctional officers, social services employees and Arkansas State Police officers at double-digit percentages. Officials often describe these positions as the state’s toughest to fill.

According to data from the state Department of Transformation and Shared Services, the Department of Human Services reported 20% of its positions were vacant.

State Police reported a vacancy rate of about 10%, and spokesperson Cindy Murphy said the agency had 74 vacant officer positions on Dec. 4.

The vacancy rate across all correctional departments and agencies was nearly 30% as of Dec. 5. Shari Gray, a spokesperson for the Department of Corrections, said 1,010 security positions — including correctional officers — were vacant.

At the Board of Corrections’ monthly December meeting, members discussed extending shifts of most employees at Community Correction Centers from 8 hours to 12 hours. The change in shifts would both reduce the need to hire more staff and ensure that there’s enough around-the-clock supervision to allow more inmates to be moved from county jails to the state-run centers.

Statewide job openings

The roughly 12,000 vacant state jobs are a small portion of Arkansas’ total job openings. In September, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Arkansas had 102,000 job openings. Arkansas tied with Alaska for the nation’s highest job openings rate at 6.9%, according to the BLS. The national rate was 4.5%.

According to the most recent BLS data from October, Arkansas’ total job openings decreased to 82,000 for a rate of 5.6%. The national rate was 4.6%.

Michael Pakko (Arkansas Secretary of State)

Though Arkansas has been at the top of the rankings in recent years, Michael Pakko, chief economist at the University of Arkansas-Little Rock’s Arkansas Economic Development Institute, said the inflated rates are a nationwide phenomenon.

“On one hand, it means that we have a robust labor market where there’s plenty of opportunities for workers and job seekers,” Pakko said. “On the other hand, it probably does indicate a mismatch that we need to address in order to utilize our full potential.”

The BLS defines open jobs as full-time, part-time or seasonal positions that could start within 30 days and an employer is actively recruiting outside workers.

The number of jobs available can also contribute to a higher quit rate because workers feel comfortable that there are other opportunities out there, Pakko said. The perception, however, puts more constraints on employers, and they may have to offer higher wages to keep staff.

Nationwide, about 1.7 million fewer people were active in the workforce this November than in February 2020, before the COVID-19 pandemic. According to a U.S. Chamber of Commerce survey of unemployed workers, about half said they are now not willing to take jobs that don’t offer remote work. One in three respondents said they were focused on gaining new skills, education or training before reentering the job market, and 17% had retired.

“As baby boomers are aging and retiring, we’re losing a lot of that cohort of workers, and then it’s a matter of offsetting that with higher participation from younger-aged groups,” Pakko said.

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Arkansas

#24 Arkansas Explodes for Eight Runs in Eighth to Race past Missouri State in Midweek Rematch

Published

3 hours ago

April 22, 2026

Press Room

#24 Arkansas Explodes for Eight Runs in Eighth to Race past Missouri State in Midweek Rematch

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – No. 24 Arkansas (27-15) used an eight-run eighth inning, punctuated by home runs from Ryder Helfrick and TJ Pompey, to race past Missouri State (26-12) in a 12-4 win Tuesday night at Baum-Walker Stadium.

With their win in the rematch against the Bears, the Razorbacks improved to 9-2 in midweek games, including a 7-1 mark in midweek matchups at home, this season. Arkansas will conclude its midweek slate next week with a double midweek series against Northwestern State from April 28-29 inside the friendly confines of Baum-Walker Stadium.

Entering the bottom of the eighth tied at four, the Hogs exploded for eight runs on seven hits, including four extra-base hits, to blow the game open. Carter Rutenbar’s go-ahead two-run single through the right side put Arkansas up 6-4 and set the table for Camden Kozeal’s RBI double, Helfrick’s three-run blast and Pompey’s two-run shot later in the frame.

When the bottom of the eighth was all said and done, the Razorbacks had opened a commanding 12-4 lead after they were shut out through the game’s first five innings. Kozeal finished the night 3-for-5 with a double, home run and two RBI to lead Arkansas offensively and raise his season slash line to .305/.394/.604 with 11 homers and a team-high 48 RBI.

Helfrick, meanwhile, swatted his team-leading 14th home run in Tuesday night’s win against the Bears. The Razorbacks’ superstar catcher is now slashing .293/.430/.626 with 14 homers and 40 RBI through his 41 games played this season.

In addition to Kozeal, Nolan Souza (3-for-5), Reese Robinett (2-for-5, 2B) and Kuhio Aloy (2-for-4, RB) logged multi-hit games. Along with Helfrick and Kozeal, Rutenbar (1-for-4, 2 RBI) and Pompey (1-for-1, HR, RBI) tallied multiple RBI.

On the mound, Tate McGuire made his third start of the season for Arkansas and worked 3.2 innings of two-run ball with four strikeouts. In relief, Colin Fisher (3.1 IP, 1 R, 0 ER, 5 SO), Steele Eaves (0.1 IP, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 SO), Parker Coil (0.2 IP) and Cooper Dossett (1.0 IP, 2 SO) combined for 5.1 innings of two-run ball (one earned) with eight strikeouts to seal the win.

Up next, the Hogs will hit the road for an SEC weekend series from April 23-25 in Columbia, Mo. First pitch in the series opener between Arkansas and Missouri (20-21) is scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday, April 23, on SEC Network.

For complete coverage of Arkansas baseball, follow the Hogs on Twitter (@RazorbackBSB), Instagram (@RazorbackBSB) and Facebook (Arkansas Razorback Baseball).

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Effort to cut former Arkansas corrections secretary’s position as adviser to governor fails – Arkansas Times

Published

15 hours ago

April 21, 2026

Press Room

Effort to cut former Arkansas corrections secretary’s position as adviser to governor fails – Arkansas Times

A legislative panel rejected a proposal Tuesday that would have eliminated former Corrections Secretary Joe Profiri’s job as an adviser to Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders.

A top lawmaker also suggested that Profiri may return to his job overseeing the state prison system, two years after he was fired by the state Board of Corrections as part of a dispute with Sanders.

The proposal rejected by the Joint Budget Committee’s personnel subcommittee would have written into the appropriation for Sanders’ office language eliminating Profiri’s position from the Republican governor’s staff. Subcommittee members voted 9-6 against the amendment, with Rep. Lane Jean not casting a vote.

Republican Sen. Terry Rice introduced the proposal last week, a little over six months after Profiri didn’t appear at a hearing on the now-stalled Franklin County prison project before a committee that Rice co-chairs.

Rice called this a “major trust-breaker.”

“The Board of Corrections members asked Mr. Profiri to share his intended plans as secretary, and they would work with him. He ignored multiple attempts,” Rice said. “I was told during that meeting, he was in the Capitol, had been seen in the hall at the same time. He didn’t even reply and chose to snub legislators’ questions.”

Profiri was fired by the Arkansas Board of Corrections as the leader of the state’s prison agency in 2024, following months of increasing tensions between the constitutionally-independent board and Sanders over opening new beds when the Department of Corrections already struggled to find sufficient staffing. Those tensions eventually resulted in lawsuits, which are still unresolved, and Profiri’s firing.

After he was fired, the Republican governor hired Profiri as a senior advisor, making him the highest paid staffer in her office. Profiri is paid $183,699.98 a year, according to the Arkansas transparency portal.

Jean, a Republican from Magnolia who co-chairs the Joint Budget Committee, asked Department of Finance and Administration Secretary Jim Hudson and Board of Corrections member Lee Watson “what the timeline was” for Sanders to rehire Profiri as corrections secretary, pointing to the new makeup of the board.

“I don’t think there’s any objection to the board, or certainly a majority of the board, to hire him (again). What are we waiting on?” Jean asked.

“What I can say is Secretary (Lindsay) Wallace, she is the secretary, and she will continue as secretary until the governor decides she’s not secretary,” Hudson said. “In the interim, (Profiri) continues to do his job as an adviser to the governor.”

The ongoing lawsuit between the Board of Corrections and Sanders centers on who has the authority to fire the corrections secretary. A Pulaski County Circuit Court judge ruled last year that the board does. Sanders appealed the ruling.

The board’s new Sanders-appointed majority voted to accept a settlement agreement accepting her position that she is the one with firing authority earlier this month, though the lower court order remains in force until the Arkansas Supreme Court rules on the matter.

Sam Dubke, Sanders’ spokesperson, referred the Advocate to Hudson’s remarks when asked for comment on whether Profiri would be rehired as corrections secretary.

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Arkansas

TST Images: Tulsa Drillers defeat the Arkansas Travelers, 11-3, in Tulsa

Published

1 day ago

April 21, 2026

Press Room

TST Images: Tulsa Drillers defeat the Arkansas Travelers, 11-3, in Tulsa

TULSA, Okla –The Tulsa Drillers defeat the Arkansas Travelers, 11-3, on April 19, 2026 at ONEOK Field and The Sporting Tribune’s Robert Sloter was there to capture the following TST Images.

Luke Fox #15 of the Tulsa Drillers throws a pitch during a game against the Arkansas Travelers at ONEOK Field on April 19, 2026 in Tulsa, Oklahoma.