SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Governor Pritzker announced new measures Wednesday as part of an effort to address staffing shortages in the State of Illinois’ agencies that provide essential health and safety services to Illinois’ most vulnerable residents.

According to Pritzker, the state is working to fill vacancies and hire thousands of frontline staff in the Departments of Human Services, Corrections, and Veteran’s Affairs.

AFSCME Council 31 Executive Director Roberta Lynch says nearly 7,000 positions in state government were vacant at the start of 2022.

Especially hard-hit, she says, are 24/7 facilities such as veterans’ homes, prisons, psychiatric hospitals, and centers for people with developmental disabilities.

She notes another agency of great concern is understaffing in the Department of Children and Family Services, which is charged with protecting children from abuse and neglect.

As a result, in all of these settings, employees are burning out, safety is at risk, and overtime costs are rising.

Lynch says with Wednesday’s announcement, the Pritzker Administration is moving forward to reduce the bureaucratic delays in the state hiring process that have been frustrating to so many.

Interested individuals may visit work.illinois.gov to apply and search for jobs by agency, title, or county.