The County has traditionally contracted with Temporary Help vendors to assist County agencies, departments, or offices during peak loads, temporary absences, and emergency situations.
To continue the contracted services, The Human Resources Department released a new RFP #2101-450: Contracted Temporary Help Service on January 15, 2021. Thirteen agencies responded by submitting a proposal. After a review of the proposals, seven agencies were selected to provide a 20-minute virtual presentation of their bid to the Evaluation Committee. The Evaluation Committee was comprised of members from six County agencies, departments, and agencies, including the District Attorney’s Office, the Employment and Human Services Department, the Public Works Department, the Public Defender’s Office, the Information Technology Department, and the Sheriff’s Office.
Criteria used to evaluate the agencies focused on the firm’s ability to provide services to all areas of the County, including outlying areas of East and West County, the process by which applicants are recruited, screened and tested, the history and success in providing this type of service to other large agencies, the professional experience of the staff, the capability to develop a diverse candidate pool, the capacity to provide staff within one business day, the skill in conducting reference and background check, and the fiscal impact to the County as a whole.
As governed by State law, temporary help obtained under these contracts may not be used in place of permanent County employees and may not be utilized for more than 90 days for any single instance of peak workload, temporary absence, or emergency situation. The five (5) year contract term from July 1, 2022, through June 30, 2027 is inclusive of the initial three (3) year contract term, with the possibility of two (2) successive one (1) year renewals.
If these contract agreements are not approved, the loss of these services will have a significant and negative impact on operating departments that currently utilize contracted temporary help services to immediately backfill for permanent County employees who are on an approved leave of absence or when an emergency arises such as those recently caused by the pandemic. Contracted temporary help agencies can provide temporary workers with less than a 24-hour notice.