June 12, 2026 — In May 2024, the NYS Department of Civil Service issued a Request for Proposals to secure the services of a vendor to review the state’s total compensation structure, including benefits, and compare it with similar employers and recommend strategies to make it more competitive.
Civil Service Commissioner Timothy Hogues attended the PEF Executive Board meeting on June 4, 2026, to answer questions about the state of the study and other issues pertaining to his department.
He said Deloitte was selected as the study vendor in June 2024 and a contract was finalized with them in February 2025.
“Deloitte looked at 1,000 titles,” said Hogues. “That was a lot of work that had to go into that. I wanted to give you that backdrop to say that we started working on this a little over a year ago.”
Hogues added something “of this magnitude” takes time but the state was “getting close.”
RELATED: Full coverage of the June 2026 Executive Board meeting
The formal engagement with Deloitte was extended by the State and is set to end this summer, but Hogues couldn’t put a pin on precisely when a final report would be forthcoming.
“Just because their work is complete doesn’t mean it’s done,” he said. “As soon as it is complete we will put it out there and we will push it. I have told my team and my executive staff that this is one of our top priorities. I have heard the voices of PEF members. At every event, PEF members come up to me and ask where the study is. It will be pushed out as soon as possible. I ask about this at least every week.”
Executive Board members met that information with frustration, calling it a delay tactic and questioning the department’s attempts to expand use of Training and Education exams (T&Es) as a basis for hiring.
Hogues touted T&Es as a way to break down barriers for individuals who are not good at multiple choice tests or who are fresh out of school.
“We want to give opportunities to as many people as possible,” he said. “We talked to subject matter experts, and this is the model they recommend. This is what we are moving forward with.”
Computer-based testing centers like the first one in Cohoes, N.Y. (PEF Region 8) will continue to open this year, with eight more planned locations that will offer self-scheduling and be open six days a week. He said computer-based test scores will come out in “weeks” not months.
For computer-based tests held in February and March of this year, Hogues said he believed lists “have been kicked out rather quickly.”
An Executive Board member asked Hogues about the status of reallocation and salary differential requests, questioning whether the department had the authority to pause all review at this time.
“They do,” Hogues said. When asked why, he said the department’s staffing doesn’t support completing the in-depth work that goes into reallocation and differentials while also undertaking the compensation study.
Staffing was also cited as the reason for continued reliance on the NYHELPS program, originally intended to be hiring for “emergency limited placement” but that was extended for the third time, now in effect until June 2028. The program was created on the heels of the pandemic, when it was a challenge to fill vacancies, and Executive Board members questioned what the “emergency” was now.
“I consider it an emergency when we are not able to properly staff our agencies,” Hogues answered. “We have heard it from you and others about staffing.”
Members pointed out how often they hear from members about being passed over for promotions that are filled by NYHELPS appointments off the street.
“We are hiring off the street and putting people into promotional titles that people have been waiting for openings,” one said. “Titles are being added that do not show they cannot be filled.”
Hogues asked PEF to notify his office whenever that happens.
PEF’s Civil Service Enforcement and Research Department has collected similar feedback from a survey about career mobility concerns and their experiences with the program. The results of the survey will be included in a report to be published by the union later this summer. The report will also include an in-depth review of the PEF titles in the program.