Goodwin addresses staffing vacancies and reinstated probation officer trainee title
Goodwin says probation's most important asset is its people and notes the agency had a 23% vacancy rate. She says the vacancy rate has decreased 8% and describes reinstituting the probation officer trainee title to hire college graduates while they gain casework experience.
Without question, probation's most important asset is its people.
We cannot do this work without quality, experienced staff.
For the past three years, probation had the highest vacancy rate of any city agency, 23%.
Thankfully, we are beginning to see results from our staffing and recruitment focus as our vacancy rate has decreased 8%.
This has had a marked impact on staff morale and workload, and ultimately the resources and attention available for the people we serve.
Here's how we got there.
Probation officers are one of the most highly educated and credentialed civil service titles in New York City government.
title series requires a bachelor's degree and two years of casework experience.
To hire college graduates who do not have yet the casework experience, like I didn't when I first started, we reinstituted the probation officer trainee title.
This additional civil service title meets the field requirements while on the job, allowing us to hire and train more officers more quickly.
The next probation officer training exam will be open for filing November 5th through the 25th, 2026.