SEANC State Employees Association of North Carolina

NC's Vacancy "Crisis"
Is Really a Pay Crisis

State Auditor Dave Boliek's own data shows that low compensation is the #1 reason positions sit empty — not waste, not redundancy. Here's what the numbers actually say.

Source: State Auditor Dave Boliek, Report PER-2026-3319 (January 2026)  |  Data as of August 6, 2025  |  Compiled by SEANC Communications

Top-Line Findings

What the Auditor's Data Shows

State Auditor Dave Boliek's January 2026 report identified 8,845 long-term vacancies across 46 state agencies. Legislators are using this data to justify job cuts. SEANC is using the same data to show why pay raises are the real solution.

8,845
Long-Term Vacancies
Positions vacant 6+ months as of Aug 6, 2025. That's 11% of the state workforce.
$1.04B
Lapsed Salary Generated
Already being spent on overtime, temp workers & operations — not sitting in a vault.
34%
Due to Low Pay
The #1 reason — 2,984 positions vacant because the state doesn't pay enough to hire.
~3,000
Frozen by Budget Impasse
Positions legally blocked from being filled under G.S. 143C-5-4 — not because they aren't needed, but because the legislature hasn't passed a budget.
825 days
Avg Vacancy Duration
Over 2 years. These aren't new openings — they're chronic, systemic shortfalls.
<1%
State Workforce Growth Since 2009
NC has added less than 1% to its state workforce since 2009 — while adding 2 million residents.
16.6%
Of State Payroll Budget
Lapsed salary represents $482M if all vacant positions stayed empty a full year.
13%
Filled After DAVE Act
When agencies were motivated, 1,181 vacancies were filled in just 8 weeks. The problem IS solvable.
🔒
Nearly 3,000 Positions Are Frozen — Not Because They Aren't Needed, But Because There Is No Budget
Under G.S. 143C-5-4, when the state operates without an enacted budget, agencies are legally prohibited from filling positions that weren't already authorized in the prior budget. For nearly seven months, almost 3,000 positions have sat empty for exactly this reason — not because the work isn't critical, not because the state can't afford it, but because the General Assembly has not passed a budget. These frozen positions are counted in the vacancy totals the auditor presented. They inflate the numbers and distort the narrative. Vacancy numbers will always rise when hiring is prohibited, regardless of public need. — SEANC Executive Director Ardis Watkins, letter to Gov. Stein, Speaker Hall, and President Pro Tempore Berger, January 15, 2026
📌
The Auditor Said It Himself
"The total $1.04 billion generated does not necessarily represent actual dollars that were available and/or used by state agencies for other purposes, or total funds available in the future if long-term vacancies were eliminated." — Auditor Dave Boliek, PER-2026-3319, p. 1

Cutting positions doesn't free up $1 billion. Agencies are already using that money to keep the lights on.
⚠️
The Data Is Disputed — and the Books Are Being Balanced on Workers' Backs
Governor Stein's chief of staff identified $246 million in lapsed salary from "unfunded placeholder positions that have never generated lapsed salary" — and $47 million from federal positions that don't produce state funds. Meanwhile, OSBM reported that in August 2024, state receipts came in $471 million over budget — but $571 million of that surplus came from reverted salary funds. In other words: the state is making its finances look better by simply not hiring the employees it budgeted for. Cutting jobs based on inflated numbers and a budget built on vacancy "savings" isn't fiscal responsibility. It's a shell game.
Agency Data

Vacancies by State Agency

16 agencies have a long-term vacancy rate above 5%. Here's a breakdown of the agencies with the most significant vacancy issues — and what's actually driving them.

Agency LT Vacancies LT Vacancy Rate Yearly State Lapsed Salary* % Due to Low Pay Key Context
Dept. of Health & Human Services 3,074 17.0% $135M 29.7% Nurses, care workers, social workers — serving NC's most vulnerable residents
Dept. of Adult Correction 2,817 15.0% $135M 60.9% 61% of vacancies due to low pay. NC correctional officers earn 3rd-lowest starting salary in the US
Dept. of Transportation 838 7.3% $3.3M 11.9% Road/bridge maintenance and safety inspection — rural communities most at risk
Dept. of Commerce
⚠ Includes 650 DES placeholder positions
 684 33.4% $4.6M — 650 of 684 vacancies are federal placeholder slots for unemployment crises — kept for rapid deployment, not real vacancies
Dept. of Public Safety 409 12.2% $17.8M 24.9% Youth counselors serving juveniles in state custody — paid below neighboring state averages
State Highway Patrol 161 6.6% $9.4M 24.2% 49th lowest starting salary in US. Relies on vacancy lapsed salary to fund vehicles and equipment — because the legislature hasn't fully funded operations
Dept. of Agriculture & Consumer Services 126 6.2% $4.9M 24.6% Food safety inspectors, rural extension programs
Dept. of Natural & Cultural Resources 115 5.2% $6.3M — Filled 56% of vacancies after DAVE Act — proof agencies CAN hire when motivated
Dept. of Information Technology 87 6.2% $8.5M — Salaries are more competitive here — vacancies reflect skills competition and recruitment timelines rather than compensation gaps alone
State Bureau of Investigation 51 10.3% $2.5M — Law enforcement capacity — public safety implications
Dept. of Justice 54 6.2% $2.7M — AG's office — legal and regulatory capacity affected
Office of Administrative Hearings 5 7.9% $341K — Handles due process hearings for state employees — SHRA implications

*Yearly state lapsed salary excludes federal and highway fund dollars. Source: DAVE Act Report PER-2026-3319, Figure 7.

✅
When Agencies Are Motivated, They Hire
After the DAVE Act passed, the Department of Natural & Cultural Resources filled 56% of its long-term vacancies in 8 weeks. The Department of Environmental Quality filled 41%. These weren't previously unfillable jobs — they were jobs agencies hadn't prioritized. The vacancy problem is solvable. The solution is competitive pay, not position elimination.
Salary Comparison

The Pay Gap Is the Problem

The auditor's own recommendation: "North Carolina salaries should be competitive with those offered to similar positions in surrounding states." Here's what competitive pay actually looks like — and how far NC falls short.

Correctional Officer

Dept. of Adult Correction
NC State Agency Avg $46,723
NC Statewide Avg (BLS) $50,450
National Average (BLS) $62,760
Pay Gap (Agency vs. National) -$16,037
NC Starting Salary $37,621
Neighboring States Avg Start $44,920
35% Total Vacancy Rate 3rd Lowest Starting Salary in US

Registered Nurse

Dept. of Health & Human Services
NC State Agency Avg $71,478
NC Statewide Avg (BLS) $86,270
National Average (BLS) $93,600
Pay Gap (Agency vs. National) -$22,122
Virginia Average $90,930
Georgia Average $91,960
55% Long-Term Vacancy Rate 33rd / 50 States

Licensed Practical Nurse

Dept. of Health & Human Services
NC State Agency Avg $48,325
NC Statewide Avg (BLS) $62,040
National Average (BLS) $62,340
Pay Gap (Agency vs. National) -$14,015
Virginia Average $63,380
48% Total Vacancy Rate 24th / 50 States

Nursing Assistant / Health Care Tech

Dept. of Health & Human Services
NC State Agency Avg $36,912
NC Statewide Avg (BLS) $37,980
National Average (BLS) $41,270
Pay Gap (Agency vs. National) -$4,358
Virginia Average $40,160
35% Total Vacancy Rate 37th / 50 States

Youth / Juvenile Court Counselor

Dept. of Public Safety
NC State Agency Avg $51,850
NC Statewide Avg (BLS) $47,490
National Average (BLS) $58,070
South Carolina Average $69,840
Georgia Average $65,560
Tennessee Average $53,710
40% Youth Counselor Vacancy Rate 34th / 43 Reporting States

State Highway Patrol Trooper

State Highway Patrol
NC Starting Salary $55,000
National Starting Salary Rank 49th / 50 States
% of Vacancies Held for Operating Budget 70%
Annual Vehicle/Fuel Budget $28M
Annual Operating Budget $39M
240+ Vacancies Held for Budget Reasons
Commander Johnson: SHP can't recruit at this wage AND can't fund basic operations without vacancy lapsed salary.
💡
The Auditor's Own Redistribution Math
The report shows that by eliminating ALL correctional officer vacancies and redistributing the lapsed salary, CO average pay could rise from $46,723 to $62,966 — but that would require removing 2,039 positions from a prison system already dangerously understaffed. The same math applies to nurses. This isn't an argument for cuts — it's proof the state is already spending the money. The answer is more appropriations, not fewer workers.
Vacancy Explanations

Why Positions Are Vacant

The state agencies themselves reported why positions sit empty. Low pay leads by a wide margin. Here's the full breakdown — and what each category means for policy.

Low Pay / Unqualified Applicants
34% — 2,984 positions
Never Posted (Total)
22% — 1,914 positions
No Explanation Given
10% — 897 positions
Administrative Lag
10% — ~885 positions
Held for Operating Funds
9% — 773 positions
Funding Concerns / Cuts
7% — ~619
Filled After DAVE Act
13% — 1,181 filled
Reason Category Vacancies % of Total What It Actually Means
Low Pay / Unqualified Applicants 2,984 34% The legislature set salaries too low. These aren't ghost jobs — they're jobs nobody will take at the offered wage. DAC: 61% of vacancies. DHHS: 30%.
Never Posted (after removing legitimate reasons) 733 8% After removing positions planned for elimination (278), unfunded placeholders (546), reclassifications (191), and statutory holds (166) — 733 remain unexplained.
Held Vacant for Operating Funds 773 9% These agencies are using lapsed salary from vacancies to fund operations the legislature hasn't fully appropriated — including basic needs like vehicles and medical staff. The problem is the legislature's failure to budget honestly for what state government actually costs.
Administrative Lag (reclassification, transfers, HR process) ~885 10% Process inefficiency — addressable without cuts. DOT: 41% administrative lag. DOJ: 46%. These are manageable with streamlined HR, not elimination.
Funding Concerns / Cuts ~619 7% Many held vacant because the legislature proposed cutting them. A catch-22: agencies must keep positions open when either chamber includes them in a proposed budget cut until a budget passes.
No Explanation Given 897 10% Required by statute to explain. Seven agencies had 5%+ "no response" rates. Don't cut what you can't explain — and don't let bad data drive good people out of jobs.
🚨
The "Never Posted" Number Is Misleading
22% of vacancies were never posted — but dig deeper: 546 are federal placeholder positions for unemployment crises (kept ready for rapid deployment), 278 are planned for elimination, 191 are being reclassified, and 166 are required by statute to stay open. After all those legitimate reasons, 733 positions were never posted without explanation — 8% of total. That's the number worth scrutinizing, not the headline 22%.
What Cuts Actually Save

The Real Math on Job Cuts

The auditor laid out nine elimination scenarios. Here's what each one actually saves in state appropriations — and what it costs in human services. All figures exclude federal funds and unfunded placeholder positions.

🔑
The Auditor's Own Preferred Approach Saves Less Than You Think
Eliminating positions vacant 3+ years while protecting nurses, correctional officers, and SHP saves an estimated $11.2 million in state appropriations. North Carolina's state budget is $30.8 billion. That's less than 4/100ths of one percent. This is not a fiscal solution. If the goal is actually cutting the workforce, that should be said plainly.
Elimination Scenario Positions Cut Annual State Appropriations Saved Annual Receipts SEANC Assessment
Positions held vacant for operating funds 680 $10.5M $19.7M These agencies are making do with inadequate appropriations. The right fix is honest legislative budgeting — give agencies what they need — not cutting the positions they're relying on to survive.
Vacant 5+ years 140 $1.9M $4.5M Least disruptive. Even the auditor calls this the most limited approach. $1.9M is a rounding error in a $30.8B budget.
Vacant 3+ years ⭐ (Auditor's preferred approach) 1,159 $27.9M $27.7M Auditor's "mixed bag" recommendation when paired with carving out COs, nurses, and SHP — saves ~$11.2M net in state appropriations. Less than 0.04% of state budget.
Vacant 2+ years 2,554 $69.7M $51.2M Significant service risk. Thousands of direct-care and public safety positions. The savings don't justify the human cost.
Never posted & unexplained 55 $897K $1.4M Small but defensible. These 55 positions were never advertised and never explained. Worth reviewing individually.
Vacant 1+ year, zero applicants 239 $5.1M $10.5M Zero applicants = salary set too low, not position unnecessary. Cutting these locks in the pay problem permanently.
All vacant 1+ year (most aggressive) 4,514 $138.6M $79.3M Massive service cuts. Includes 2,039 CO positions and 1,569 nursing positions. Workforce reduction at scale — not an efficiency measure.
📊
The $1 Billion Is Already Gone
When the Department of Adult Correction eliminated 1,515 positions in late 2025, it didn't "save" $135 million. It transferred the salary budget directly to contract nurses, medical supplies, food for incarcerated people, IT costs, and maintenance contracts. This is what every agency is doing with lapsed salary — already spending it to keep essential services running. Eliminating positions just makes that survival budgeting permanent.
Advocacy Resources

SEANC's Analysis: What the Data Really Shows

Every point below is grounded in the auditor's own report — the same document being used to push for job cuts — along with SEANC's direct knowledge of the workforce conditions state employees face every day. Click any card to expand it and share it.

Nearly 3,000 positions are frozen — not because the work isn't needed, but because the legislature hasn't passed a budget
▾
"For nearly seven months, almost 3,000 state positions have been frozen under G.S. 143C-5-4 solely because a new budget has not been enacted. Agencies have been unable to fill these jobs no matter how critical the public need. That reality alone skews vacancy totals and distorts the narrative. Vacancy numbers will rise when hiring is prohibited, regardless of need."
Source: SEANC Executive Director Ardis Watkins, letter to Gov. Stein, Speaker Hall, and President Pro Tempore Berger, January 15, 2026. G.S. 143C-5-4 prohibits filling positions not authorized in the prior enacted budget when the state operates under a continuing resolution.
NC has added less than 1% to its state workforce since 2009 — while adding 2 million residents. Neighboring states grew their workforces and outperformed NC economically.
▾
"If these frozen positions were permanently cut, North Carolina would have more than 1,000 fewer state jobs than it did in 2009 — despite adding two million residents since that time. Virginia and Georgia exceed North Carolina in gross state product per capita by substantial margins, even though both have increased their state workforces significantly more than we have. The data is clear: building public capacity does not hinder growth; it supports it."
Source: SEANC Executive Director Ardis Watkins, letter to Gov. Stein, Speaker Hall, and President Pro Tempore Berger, January 15, 2026, citing General Assembly Fiscal Research data and OSBM reporting. NC population growth: ~2 million since 2009 (U.S. Census Bureau).
The $1 billion isn't savings — it's already spent
▾
"Cutting these positions doesn't free up $1 billion. Agencies are already using that money to pay for overtime, temp workers, contract nurses, and operating expenses. The auditor himself said so. Eliminating positions doesn't save the money — it eliminates the service and locks in the problem."
Source: PER-2026-3319, p. 1: "The $1.04B does not necessarily represent actual dollars available... or total funds available if long-term vacancies were eliminated." Also: DAC transferred eliminated positions' salary directly to contract nurses, food, medical supplies, and maintenance.
The state's books look better because employees aren't being hired — that's not a surplus, it's a failure
▾
"In August 2024, OSBM reported that state receipts came in $471 million over budget. But $571 million of that total resulted from reverted salary funds — money budgeted for employees who were never hired. The state is improving its fiscal appearance by not spending money that was appropriated for services North Carolinians were supposed to receive. That's not a surplus. That's a broken promise."
Source: SEANC Executive Director Ardis Watkins, letter to Gov. Stein, Speaker Hall, and President Pro Tempore Berger, January 15, 2026, citing OSBM August 2024 revenue report.
The auditor identified a pay crisis — not a bloat problem
▾
"The state's own auditor found that 34% of all vacancies — nearly 3,000 jobs — are vacant because North Carolina doesn't pay enough. These aren't ghost jobs. They're jobs nobody will take at the wage the legislature set. The fix is a raise, not a pink slip."
Source: PER-2026-3319, p. v: "Low compensation was the most common cause for long-term vacancies." Page xii: "North Carolina salaries should be competitive with surrounding states."
NC correctional officers have the 3rd lowest starting pay in the country
▾
"Correctional officers in North Carolina start at $37,621 — the third lowest starting salary in the country, above only Louisiana and New Mexico. Neighboring states average $44,920 to start. North Carolina has a 35% correctional officer vacancy rate. The answer isn't eliminating those vacant slots. The answer is paying people enough to show up."
Source: PER-2026-3319, p. 28: "Starting pay is $37,621, which is the third lowest in the nation." Neighboring states avg starting salary: $44,920. NC CO vacancy rate: 35.3% total, 26% long-term.
Half of all nursing positions at DHHS are vacant
▾
"At DHHS, 55% of registered nurse positions are vacant. Licensed practical nurses: 48% vacant. The state pays registered nurses $22,000 less than the national average. These positions serve people in state hospitals and care facilities right now. Cutting the vacant slots doesn't solve the staffing crisis — it locks it in permanently."
Source: PER-2026-3319, pp. 35–42: RN vacancy rate 55%, avg salary $71,478 vs national $93,600. LPN vacancy rate 48%, avg salary $48,325 vs national $62,340.
The Highway Patrol is 49th in starting salary — and uses vacant positions to fund what the legislature won't
▾
"The commander of the State Highway Patrol told auditors directly: our starting salary of $55,000 ranks 49th out of 50 states. He relies on lapsed salary from 240+ vacant trooper positions to buy patrol cars and equipment — because the legislature hasn't given SHP a budget that covers basic operations. That's not an agency problem. That's a legislature that isn't budgeting honestly for what state government actually costs."
Source: PER-2026-3319, pp. 57–58: SHP keeps 70% of vacancies purposefully open. Commander Johnson confirmed SHP spends $28M annually on vehicles and fuel out of $39M operating budget. Starting salary ranked 49th/50 states.
The auditor's preferred cut saves less than 0.04% of the state budget
▾
"The auditor's own recommended approach — cutting positions vacant 3+ years while protecting nurses, COs, and SHP — saves an estimated $11.2 million in state appropriations. North Carolina's budget is $30.8 billion. That's less than four hundredths of one percent. If the goal is saving money, this isn't the tool. If the goal is cutting the workforce, say that plainly."
Source: PER-2026-3319, transmittal letter: "Mixed bag approach... would save an estimated $11.2 million in state appropriations." State budget: $30.8 billion (SFY 2025).
Agencies hired 13% of vacancies in 8 weeks when motivated — the problem IS solvable
▾
"Between August and October 2025 — right after the DAVE Act passed — 1,181 long-term vacancies were filled. That's 13% of all long-term vacancies in 8 weeks. Natural & Cultural Resources filled 56% of theirs. Environmental Quality filled 41%. The problem is solvable. The solution is competitive pay — not the threat of elimination."
Source: PER-2026-3319, p. 10: "13% of long-term vacancies were filled between August 6 and October 1, 2025... allocating $63.4M in State funds to personal services, eliminating $70.4M in yearly lapsed salaries."
The data itself is disputed — don't cut based on inflated numbers
▾
"Even before examining the policy implications, there are questions about the data. The Governor's office identified $246 million in reported lapsed salary from positions that never actually generated lapsed salary — and $47 million from federal positions that don't produce state funds. Cutting jobs based on disputed, inflated numbers would be irresponsible."
Source: WRAL reporting (Jan 2026): Gov. Stein's chief of staff Seth Dearmin letter to Auditor Boliek. DHHS stated report contained "misleading associations and omissions of context."
Vacant ≠ Unnecessary. The work still exists — the workers don't.
▾
"The auditor said it himself: 'A vacant position is, in fact, vacant. Elimination of a position does not represent the elimination of a position currently filled by a state civil servant.' But the real question isn't whether the seat is empty today — it's whether the work is needed. An empty correctional officer post doesn't mean prisons need fewer officers. It means the state can't recruit at the salary it's offering."
Source: PER-2026-3319, transmittal letter: Auditor Boliek's own language. DAC has 7,947 authorized correctional officer positions, 2,808 vacant. The work requirement doesn't disappear when the position sits empty.
Raising pay works — DHHS proved it in 2024
▾
"In 2024, DHHS abolished 520 positions to free up budget room — then used those funds to raise minimum salaries for registered nurses by $5,980, health care technician I by $1,768, and technician IIs by $1,872. They turned vacancies into raises. That's the model. The General Assembly should appropriate the funds to do this at scale — not use vacancy data as a pretext to shrink the workforce."
Source: PER-2026-3319 (April 2026 follow-up, DAVE-2026-3319): "DHHS reported that in 2024 it abolished 520 positions, which affected funding for 3,920 positions across DHHS, including in-range salary adjustments... minimum salaries of registered nurses were raised by $5,980."