City Will Delay Filling of Vacant Positions to Save Money

NEW BEDFORD – The City has begun delaying the filling of vacant positions across city government as part of a new round of budgetary belt-tightening. As of Thursday, February 6, all new job openings are being placed on hold for 45 days before departments are allowed to advertise and receive applications for the vacant positions.

The 45-day delay — which will be in effect through the end of the current fiscal year — applies to the positions of all city employees, exclusive of public safety dispatchers, School Department positions, or positions funded by sources outside the City’s General Fund. (Staffing of police officers and firefighters will also not be affected by the delay, as no training academies will graduate cadets prior to the close of the current fiscal year.)

In announcing the new austerity measure, Chief Financial Officer Robert Ekstrom, said “New Bedford residents may notice a reduction in service levels, longer wait times at City Hall, or other delays as vacant positions go unfilled, but the reality is we have an obligation to do our very best to ensure against year-end deficits. This is an essential part of our financial management strategy.”

Mayor Mitchell noted, “Our focus during the first half of the fiscal year was on methodically scouring individual department budgets, but that exercise only gets you so far without across-the-board measures like hiring delays. Blanket delays or freezes can be very disruptive to operations, and there are certainly real-world consequences felt by residents, but in the current circumstance, it’s a necessary measure.”

*Published Feb. 12, 2025