TO: RULES AND OPEN GOVERNMENT FROM: Councilmember Sylvia Arenas COMMITTEE District 8
SUBJECT: SEE BELOW DATE: December 1, 2022
Approved Date 12/1/2022
SUBJECT: STAFFING RECRUITMENT, RETENTION, AND VACANCIES
RECOMMENDATION
1. Agendize a special meeting no later than March of 2023 on the subject of Staff Vacancies, Recruitment, and Retention.
a. Meeting should provide Council with a review of all existing strategies, but also additionally presentations on new strategies proposed by HR, bargaining units, and community organizations.
b. Council should be presented with strategies that would require:
i. New funding for HR staff or internal HR staff in various departments ii. New focus on addressing issues in high-turnover classifications iii. Substantial changes in job requirements for chronically vacant positions iv. Strategies for addressing acute vacancy rates in critically effected departments, including:
1. Environmental Services
2. Housing
3. Parks, Recreation and Neighborhood Services
4. Planning, Building & Code Enforcement
5. Public Works
6. Information Technology
2. Direct the City Manager to author a Manager’s Budget Addendum for the upcoming budget cycle which provides the Council with accurate budgetary figures for implementing the strategies discussed at the Special Meeting.
BACKGROUND
It is vital that the City of San José find creative and effective solutions to address the chronically high vacancy rates that exist across departments and are most acute in certain classifications and departments.
RULES AGENDA: 12/7/2022
ITEM: C.5
These vacancies have a deeply corrosive impact on the services that our community relies on – from the safety issues that come from Code Enforcement vacancies, to the missing childcare spots that come from PRNS vacancies, and to the delays in housing construction that can be caused by the vacancies in Planning or Public Works.
Worse, it is a self-fulfilling prophesy, as high vacancy rates lead to burnout in our staff, which leads to higher turnover – and therefore even worse vacancy rates.
I must acknowledge the very dedicated effort of our Human Resources team, and the departments to address this issue – however, a much broader effort is clearly required as we take on this task.
Additionally, it is clear this is an issue that does not just effect San José, but that simply does not mean that we can afford to accept that as a justification. San José must blaze new solutions to this problem – and open new doors of opportunity and employment by finding new ways to open these jobs up to under-employed members of our community.