GlossaryStaffing, accountability, and public reporting
Vacancy rate
A vacancy rate is the share of positions in a defined staffing base that are unfilled at a stated time.
A vacancy rate is the share of positions in a defined staffing base that are unfilled at a stated time. In a common agency-budget calculation, it is vacant authorized positions divided by all authorized positions, multiplied by 100. The employee category, date, and position units must match on both sides.
How to calculate it
When the source defines vacancies as authorized minus filled positions:
Vacancy rate = (authorized positions − filled positions) ÷ authorized positions × 100.
The NYC Comptroller's staffing dashboard shows why changes can come from either authorized positions or actual employment. A lower rate does not necessarily mean successful recruitment; reducing authorization can also lower the measured gap.
Example
Hypothetical example: A department has 100 authorized positions and 90 filled positions on July 1. It has ten vacancies, so its vacancy rate is 10 ÷ 100 × 100 = 10%.
If authorization later falls to 95 while filled positions remain 90, the gap becomes five and the rate is about 5.3%. No hiring occurred in this example. The denominator change explains the lower rate.
Common confusion
Vacancy rate differs from turnover, which concerns departures over a period. An agency can have few vacancies while hiring repeatedly to replace departing staff.
A vacancy percentage is also not the percentage of a shift uncovered. Authorized workforce and scheduled deployment are different measures.
Method boundaries
State whether the base includes funded positions, all authorized positions, recruits, part-time jobs, or FTE. Do not divide a head-count gap by an FTE authorization. A zero authorized base does not produce a meaningful vacancy percentage, and filled staffing above authorization needs explicit reporting rather than an unexplained negative “vacancy” figure.