To: Sonoma County Board of Supervisors, Board of Directors of the Sonoma County Water Agency, Board of Commissioners of the Community Development Commission, Board of Directors of the Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District, and Board of Directors of the Northern California Air Pollution Control District
Department or Agency Name(s): Human Resources Department
Staff Name and Phone Number: Janell Crane, 707-565-2885; Lisa Conner, 707-565-3207
Vote Requirement: Majority
Supervisorial District(s): Countywide
Title:
Title
Temporary Staffing Agencies Agreements - Third Amendment
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Recommended Action:
Recommended action
A) Authorize the Director of Human Resources to execute a Third Amendment to the Agreements for temporary staffing services for short-term needs of 90 days or less with Howroyd Wright Employment Agency, Inc., dba AppleOne Employment Services (AppleOne, Inc.), Gary D Nelson Associates, Inc., dba Nelson Staffing (Nelson Connects), BOLT Staffing Service, Inc., and Tryfacta, Inc., from January 1, 2025 to December 31, 2025, with the option to execute an additional one-year renewal based on satisfactory performance, through December 31, 2026. Each fee for services contract will include the following not to exceed amounts per contract term: $1,250,000 for Apple One, Inc., $1,000,000 for Nelson Connects, $750,000 for BOLT Staffing Services, Inc., and $250,000 for Tryfacta, Inc.
B) Authorize the Director of Human Resources to include in the Third Amendment to the Agreement with AppleOne, Inc., authorization to amend the not-to-exceed amount of the current Agreement term by an additional $850,000, effective May 1, 2024, for use through December 31, 2024, to cover past usage and forecasted future need for the rest of the calendar year that will exceed the originally authorized Agreement amount of $2,500,000 during the initial three-year period of the Agreement.
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Executive Summary:
Government Code 31000.4 allows for temporary staffing to be used by County departments and agencies to fill a position on a short-term basis, such as times of peak load, temporary absences, or emergencies. The County currently contracts with four vendors that provide temporary staffing for County departments and agencies when they have an immediate need that is anticipated to be for 90 billable (working) days or less. The existing contracts were executed for a three-year time period, from January 1, 2022, through December 31, 2024, with not to exceed amounts of $2,500,000 per contract, with the option to execute three one-year extensions per mutual agreement, through December 31, 2027.
This item seeks Board approval to authorize the Human Resources Director to execute a third amendment to the existing agreements with AppleOne, Inc., Nelson Connects, BOLT Staffing Service, Inc., and Tryfacta, Inc. to perform temporary staffing services for up to three one-year terms, with the first term running January 1, 2025, through December 31, 2025, with not to exceed amounts of $1,250,000 for AppleOne, Inc., $1,000,000 for Nelson Connects, $750,000 for BOLT Staffing Services, Inc., and $250,000 for Tryfacta, Inc., per contract term. Staff expect to issue an RFP in the coming year. However, in the event that new agreements are not in place by the end of 2025, this item also seeks approval authorizing the Human Resources Director to execute an additional one-year renewal, through December 31, 2026, with the identified vendors per mutual agreement, utilizing the aforementioned, not to exceed amounts per contract term, as well as amending the not-to-exceed amount of the current agreement with AppleOne, Inc. by an additional $850,000, effective May 1, 2024, for use through December 31, 2024, to cover past usage and forecasted future need for the rest of the calendar year.
Discussion:
In accordance with Government Code 31000.4, temporary staffing may be used by County departments to fill a position on a short-term basis, such as times of peak load, temporary absences, or emergencies, to provide continuity of services. Temporary agencies can quickly provide temporary staff due to their established employee database for multiple classifications, without having to first conduct a recruitment to establish an employment list. For example, temporary staffing agencies can fill a same-day unplanned absence, if needed.
Although the County does have extra-help employees as another option for short-term assignments, there are limitations that pose significant challenges when the need is immediate and is anticipated for 90 days or less. Extra-help positions are intended for longer-term assignments and/or planned projects and are less practical when a department is reacting to a short-term and/or immediate need. Frequently, hiring extra-help employees requires conducting a recruitment to establish an employment list pursuant to the Civil Service Rules. This process may take several weeks to complete and also requires County staff resources; whereas, a temporary service employee can be placed into a short-term assignment with the ease of a phone call to one of the contracted agencies.
Hiring extra-help retirees in light of the California Public Employees’ Pension Reform Act (PEPRA) regulations, which places restrictions on an individual’s ability to be hired for post-retirement employment, or the rehiring of other former County employees, also poses limitations which do not meet immediate short-term needs that can arise. Due to these limitations, it is not possible to fill all temporary needs using extra-help, retirees, or other former employees, making it necessary to continue to allow County departments the option of hiring temporary agency employees.
The current Agreements were awarded after a Request for Proposals (RFP) that was issued on September 14, 2021, and was distributed to 25 identified agencies, 21 of which responded to the County. Advisory panels, comprised of a mixture of subject matter experts from both Human Resources and county department users were employed to evaluate the proposals based on the criteria outlined in the RFP. The evaluation process included an assessment of services offered, professional qualifications, the agencies’ experience providing similar services, compliance with RFP requirements, and proposed rates. The panel rated AppleOne Inc., BOLT Staffing Services, Inc., Nelson Staffing, and Tryfacta, Inc. highly.
To date, these contracts have been amended twice but not yet for the purpose of extending them beyond their initial three-year term. The first amendment to these agreements, dated as of January 1, 2022, added the Biostatistician job class and an Affordable Care Act Surcharge, as well as General Civil Rights Provisions and Federal Aviation Administration Requirements for possible assignments at airports. The second amendment to these agreements, dated as of April 1, 2024, updated the fee schedules to include new Living Wage Ordinance increases from $17.65 per hour to $18.10 per hour. The cumulative amount spent on these services for all invoices posted from January 1, 2022, through August 14, 2024, was $5,540,472.49 (report run August 27, 2024). This estimate does not include COVID-related temporary staffing costs which were billed through separate FEMA-reimbursable contracts.
In looking at the usage trend over the last two and half years, Human Resources recommends the annual maximum spend for each subsequent one-year extension be authorized as follows:
• Howroyd Wright Employment Agency, Inc., dba AppleOne Employment Services - $1,250,000
• Gary D. Nelson Associates, Inc., dba Nelson Staffing - $1,000,000
• BOLT Staffing Services, Inc. - $750,000
• Tryfacta, Inc. - $250,000
In mid-2024, Human Resources recognized that based on the County’s past use of temporary staffing from AppleOne, Inc., the current maximum dollar amount is insufficient to meet the needs of the County through the end of 2025. In addition, Human Resources is recommending that the current agreements with the temporary staffing agencies be extended for another year, with the option to extend for an additional year through December 31, 2026. Human Resources intends to issue a new RFP for temporary staffing services during the coming year. However, if new agreements are not ready, and Human Resources determines that an additional extension beyond 2025 is warranted, Human Resources will execute an additional amendment with the vendors based on Board approval and dollar amounts pre-authorized, resulting from this Board item.
Strategic Plan:
N/A
Racial Equity:
Was this item identified as an opportunity to apply the Racial Equity Toolkit?
No
Prior Board Actions:
December 14, 2021 (Item 20; 2021-1328): The Director of Human Resources was authorized to execute agreements with AppleOne, Inc., Nelson Connects, Bolt Staffing, and Tryfacta to provide temporary staffing to County departments, in an amount not to exceed $2,500,000 per contract, effective January 1, 2022, to December 31, 2024, with the option to execute three one-year renewals through December 31, 2027.
Fiscal Summary
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Narrative Explanation of Fiscal Impacts:
There is no additional budgeted impact to the County resulting from these temporary service contracts. Each requesting department pays for these services from salary savings due to position vacancies, leaves of absences, and budgeted extra-help funds previously approved by the Board of Supervisors. Fee for service agreements are only used as needed and as departments determine the budget exists to pay for these services.
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Staffing Impacts: |
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Narrative Explanation of Staffing Impacts (If Required):
N/A
Attachments:
1. Howroyd Wright Employment Agency, Inc., dba AppleOne Employment Services, Third Amendment
2. Gary D Nelson Associates, Inc., dba Nelson Staffing, Third Amendment
3. BOLT Staffing Services, Inc., Third Amendment
4. Tryfacta, Inc., Third Amendment
Related Items “On File” with the Clerk of the Board:
N/A