WORKFORCE There is no union or bargaining units at DES. The workforce is organized in the following four areas : Human resources Customer Service Construction \ Maintenance Finance \ Administration We keep our permanent employee level at about fifty. Our goal is to keep enough staff to do the day to day maintenance and construction work of the System. We employ contractors to help with large projects, tree trimming, and after hours security and telephone service. Our staffing is different than most small utilities because of our operating philosophy.