Riverside—Riverside’s Mayor Pro Tem Frank Schiavone, surprised by the County of Riverside’s lay-off of 14 civil engineers, has moved quickly to offer them employment with the City of Riverside.

“The county continues to have a need for engineering expertise, but has chosen to release 14 skilled and talented engineers,” said Annelle Grajeda, president of SEIU Local 721. “Schiavone made a smart decision to ensure those who live and work in the City of Riverside can do so safely. Many of these engineers have decades of experience and will make an important contribution to the city of Riverside.”

Schiavone recommended that the City Council:

• Direct City management staff to work closely with the Service Employees International Union Local 721 to communicate the City’s interest in assisting displaced workers by exploring job matches at the City of Riverside.

• Direct the Human Resources Department to immediately open a special recruitment program targeted specifically at experienced civil engineers who have been laid-off by the County of Riverside.

• Direct the Public Works and Public Utilities Departments to conduct a fast-track interview process for qualified civil engineers who have been displaced by the County.

“To our surprise, the County of Riverside has chosen to terminate a number of experienced Civil Engineers. Despite widespread recognition that qualified Civil Engineers are in very high demand throughout the public and private sectors,” said Schiavone in a City Council memorandum. “By partnering with SEIU Local 721, our City has a unique opportunity to assist these displaced professionals by opening a special recruitment.”

The County of Riverside laid-off 14 of the 15 civil engineers working in the Building and Safety Department on Feb.13. County management has contended that there is not enough work for the displaced engineers. The County’s own data, which has been supported the engineers shows that there is still a lot of work to be done.

“Laying off the civil engineers, who are union members, makes no sense when there is still work to be done. It is not necessary to outsource the work,” said Thomas Hsu, a recently laid-off engineer.

The County has decided to outsource the remainder of the work to private engineering firms. 

                                                                                                ###