INDIANAPOLIS — The Indianapolis Department of Public Works has openings for dozens of positions across all of its divisions.
As of May 5, DPW had around 100 open positions. Another 23 newly created positions will be in July.
They say the lack of of employees is not only taking a toll on current employees, but trash pickup for residents has been delayed.
"The complaints are up. We just don't have the staffing to cover all of those routes," said DPW Solid Waste Deputy Director Shawn Brock.
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Brock says his department is need of 18 drivers and employees are being pulled from different units to make ends meet.
"Even if everybody we have to staff shows up for work, we still have down routes that we can't cover every day, which means what we have to do is shift around," said Brock. "Regular drivers who are here have not only their route, but portions of other routes to make sure it gets picked up."
Brock says it's led to more complaints from the community. Southport resident Mary Bowen doesn't mind the wait.
"Well they seem to be working hard and doing the best they can," said Bowen.
Trash collection isn't the only division short staffed. 51 positions are open in the operations division, where employees fill potholes and monitor illegal dumping and traffic signals.
"The highest impact right now is CDL drivers. We have a need for those in every area we have," said DPW spokesperson Imani Keith.
Keith says DPW desperately needs more certified commercial drivers to operate the trucks while other crew members get the jobs done. CDL A and B licensed drivers are needed.
A hiring event was held Wednesday at Garfield Park.
"We do have a lot of positions open, which means we don't have a lot of people out. Indianapolis is a big city, which means we have a lot of different things we need to do, which means we need personnel to do those jobs," Keith said. "It's important to have these hiring events to get those positions filled."
While people showed up, DPW says it's not enough to fill the void.
"We want the public to know we are driving over the same streets they are driving over. Our trash is on the same curb, so our concerns are the same ... we are doing our best," said DPW Union Representative Shonna Quick-Crowell.
As positions work to be filled, the department asks for patience.
"Our biggest thing with residents is please be patient. We will get there as soon as we can, but it may not be on their normal schedule they are used to," said Brock.
Each open position pays a minimum of $21 per hour. Open positions include working on street operations, traffic operations, solid waste and fleet services teams.
Several, but not all, of the jobs require a CDL license. Preferred candidates are Marion County residents, but that is not a requirement.
For more information on Indy DPW and available jobs, click here.
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