Shared duties may save money in Vernon Hills

Starting this fall, all building inspectors and engineering technicians in Vernon Hills will be required to learn a new skill: snow plowing.

Other employees can volunteer for the training. But because they answer phones and assist at the front counter, their availability to plow will be limited.

Vernon Hills administrators refer to the arrangement as one of many "shared service opportunities" that are being extended to a variety of municipal services.

This double duty is expected to save about $146,000 and result in hundreds of hours of increased productivity. Vernon Hills, like other towns, is trying to offset revenue losses and save money wherever possible.

"Generally, it's an all-hands-on-deck situation because of layoffs and reductions in force," says Mark Fowler, executive director of the Des Plaines-based Northwest Municipal Conference, which has about 50 members in Lake and Cook counties.

"We're in such unprecedented times, you've got municipalities looking at every single option and every single employee."

Picking up slack at the office and in the field has become a reality for many because positions often are not being filled and layoffs in the public sector are becoming more common.

"I wouldn't be surprised if people are doing it (added duties) already and don't even think about it," said Chris Gentes, executive director of the Lake County Municipal League.

Vernon Hills is one of few to put the policy in writing, however.

The days of 250 new homes each year are long gone, and a slowdown in other building activities has created down time for inspectors and other employees.

"We're shifting priorities to maintain our current service levels and enhance them where we can," said Assistant Village Manager John Kalmar.

Outlined in a nine-page memo, shared jobs include repairs and cleanup for the annual holiday light show; fixing sinks in restrooms; running a circuit to new fare boxes at the Metra station; repairing drywall; and designing and overseeing road projects.

One of the larger savings, about $74,000, is expected as community development department employees take over some duties of the police department's Community Service Officer position.

The duties include collecting parking fees at the Metra station, making daily "vacation checks" to residents' homes and even fingerprinting adults involved in sports organizations.

Doing that will allow the police department to shift a CSO to fill a vacant telecommunications position.

Village officials say job sharing will continue to grow, as they look to cut costs of outside contractors.

"I don't think we'll ever see a disbanding of this activity," even if building picks up, Kalmar said.

The new policy comes despite the fact that Vernon Hills has been trimming for years. The village has 111 full-time employees compared with 128 in 2000, a drop of 13 percent.

"We're trying to be as cost-conscious as everybody else is. The economy remains a challenge and we're battling it on multiple fronts," Kalmar said.

The idea is not entirely new. Glenview, for example, has been "cross training" employees for the past four years, according to Chris Clark, deputy village manager.

"Our jobs are now such that in almost every department our employees are hybrids," he said. Glenview's work force is now 298 compared to 350 in 2004.

Despite being leaner and more efficient, however, the village recently eliminated the equivalent of nearly two dozen positions.

"For the first time in many years, we had some reductions in force," Clark said. "It became unavoidable."