The Village of Keremeos is looking ahead by making a decision to hire a new full time public works position.
The village is considering succession planning as a major reason behind the hiring. Village staff anticipate one employee retiring in the next two to three years and a second one within the next five to 10 years.
The training required to maintain Environmental Operators Certification Program necessitates the need to plan ahead, in order for the village to have trained personnel on hand when the senior staff members retire.
Changes to the collective agreement between the village and its employees will now allow for new employees to work weekends; creating a shift schedule that will split the weekend between two employees will eliminate weekend overtime.
Part time employees limit the time period that projects can be completed by village staff. Hiring full time would allow seasonal projects to continue and eliminate an annual need for training of seasonal staff.
Staff research into other communities revealed that municipalities similar to Keremeos have an average of 6.38 full time equivalents, where Keremeos currently has only 4 full time equivalents.
The financial impact on the village to hire an additional full time position is estimated to be $28,540 dollars, after taking into account full time wages and benefits ($62,740), the current cost of seasonal staff ($34,200) and subtracting the two.