The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink AboutCC 2026-04-28_11a Workforce Vacancies AB 2561 PresentationItem 11.a. MEMORANDUM TO: City Council FROM: Ashley Garcia, Human Resources Officer SUBJECT: City Workforce Vacancies, Recruitment, and Retention Trends Presentation (Assembly Bill 2561) DATE: April 28, 2026 RECOMMENDATION: 1) Conduct a public hearing and receive and file the City of Arroyo Grande Workforce Vacancies, Recruitment, and Retention Trends presentation for the year ending December 31, 2025, to comply with Assembly Bill 2561; and 2) Find that the presentation about workforce vacancies, recruitment and retention trends is not a project subject to the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”) because it has no potential to result in either a direct, or reasonably foreseeable indirect, physical change in the environment. (State CEQA Guidelines, §§ 15060 (c)(2) and (3), 15378.) IMPACT ON FINANCIAL AND PERSONNEL RESOURCES: The only cost associated with implementation of Assembly Bill 2561 (AB 2561) is staff time in developing the report and presentation, and interfacing with the bargaining units regarding presentations. Although AB 2561 created local mandates, it specifically precludes any reimbursement from the State for costs mandated by this act. BACKGROUND: Governor Newsom's signing of AB 2561 on September 22, 2024, introduced new annual requirements for public agencies to address and publicly report on staffing vacancies and recruitment and retention efforts. As part of this law, public agencies must also highlight hiring challenges and potential policy obstacles. If vacancy rates in a bargaining unit exceed 20%, agencies must provide further details on job openings, applicant numbers, hiring timelines, and strategies for improving compensation and working conditions. Additionally, employee organizations are given the opportunity to present their perspectives during these public hearings. This report outlines the City’s workforce composition, vacancies, and strategies to attract and retain employees. While recruitment and hiring remain top priorities, the City also focuses on long-term retention through employee recognition, internal promotion opportunities, and workplace improvements Page 61 of 209 Item 11.a. City Council City Workforce Vacancies, Recruitment, and Retention Trends Presentation (Assembly Bill 2561) April 28, 2026 Page 2 such as alternative work schedules and professional development. All data collected is from the 2025 calendar year. At its April 8, 20251, meeting, the City Council adopted procedures for public hearings under Assembly Bill 2561 and directed staff to incorporate the procedure i nto the City Council Handbook. At its April 22, 20252, meeting, the City Council conducted its first AB 2561 public hearing and received and filed the City of Arr oyo Grande Workforce Vacancies, Recruitment and Retention Trends presentation for the year ending December 31, 2024. ANALYSIS OF ISSUES: The City has four (4) bargaining groups (two represented and two unrepresented), consisting of 86 authorized regular full-time equivalent (FTE) positions. For the purposes of vacancy tracking, staff excluded interns from the FTE count due to the transitory nature of the roles. To distinguish from the Personnel Summary included in the budget, the five members of City Council and contract City Attorney are also not included in the total position count for vacancy tracking. City staff also support the Human Resources function of Five Cities Fire Authority (FCFA); however, their agency-specific vacancy report was presented separately to the FCFA Board of Directors on April 20, 2026. Table 1: Count of Regular Full- and Part-Time Positions by Bargaining Group as of December 31, 2025 City of Arroyo Grande Bargaining Group Position Count Service Employees International Union (SEIU) 30 Police Officers’ Association (POA) 27 Unrepresented Management Group 23 Unrepresented Part-time Employees1 6 Total 86 1Interns are excluded from this part-time position count to track vacancies, due to the transitory nature of the roles. Vacancies, Recruitment, and Retention Vacancies Position vacancies are created for a few reasons, including when newly budgeted positions are approved, following internal movement such as a promotion or transfer, or when an employee leaves the organization due to retirement, voluntary resignation, or involuntary termination. When vacancies occur, it is a high priority for the Human Resources team and the City’s hiring managers to fill vacant positions to ensure continuity 1 https://pub-arroyogrande.escribemeetings.com/filestream.ashx?DocumentId=14280 2 https://pub-arroyogrande.escribemeetings.com/filestream.ashx?DocumentId=14364 Page 62 of 209 Item 11.a. City Council City Workforce Vacancies, Recruitment, and Retention Trends Presentation (Assembly Bill 2561) April 28, 2026 Page 3 of services, maintain operational efficiency, minimize the need for overtime, and minimize disruptions to departmental functions. Timely recruitment and hiring efforts help the City sustain its workforce, meet community needs, and uphold service standards while also providing opportunities for internal growth and external talent acquisition. Although AB 2561 now requires staff to present annually on the status of vacancies and efforts to recruit and retain staff, it has always been a priority for departments to fill vacancies as soon as reasonably possible. Throughout the 2025 calendar year, the City’s average vacancy rate across all bargaining units was 5.8%. The vacancy rate is calculated monthly as the quantity of vacancies divided by the quantity of positions. For context, a vacancy rate between 5-10% is considered healthy to maintain a balance of filling open positions and ensuring efficient operations. As of December 31, 2025, the vacancy rate for each bargaining group was below 20%, ending the year with a 9.3% vacancy rate across the organization: Table 2: Vacancy Rates by Bargaining Group as of December 31, 2025 City of Arroyo Grande Bargaining Group Vacancy Rate Service Employees International Union (SEIU) 10.3% Police Officers’ Association (POA) 18.5% Unrepresented Management Group 0% Unrepresented Part-time Employees 0% Citywide 9.3% Vacancies created in 2025 stem from a combination of factors, including resignations for employment opportunities elsewhere, retirements, unsuccessful completion of probationary period, and other personal reasons. In calendar year 202 5, there were three retirements. Retirement is typically planned and predictable and is considered natural turnover, excluded from avoidable turnover and retention metrics. Recruitment and Retention Filling vacancies and recruiting top talent are critical to delivering core services to the community and carrying out Council’s priorities but retaining that talent is equally essential for sustaining long-term success and minimizing future vacancies. The Human Resources team recognizes recruitment is focused on identifying, attracting, and hiring the right people, and retention is about keeping employees engaged, satisfied, and committed to the organization long-term. Both are critical for the success of the organization, especially in today’s competitive job market. In calendar year 2025, the City successfully filled 18 vacancies, seven of which were created by internal promotion. The average amount of time to fill a regular vacant position was 83 days for external recruitment and 18 days to fill internally via promotion. The City received 409 job applications in 2025. While the City’s average vacancy rate during 2025 Page 63 of 209 Item 11.a. City Council City Workforce Vacancies, Recruitment, and Retention Trends Presentation (Assembly Bill 2561) April 28, 2026 Page 4 was 5.8%, hiring for certain regular positions remains a challenge. Contributing factors include the rising demand for talent in specific sectors, such as civil engineers and police officers, the high cost-of-living in the south San Luis Obispo County area, and its geographical distance from a major metropolitan center, which can limit the applicant pool. To assist in recruitment and retention efforts specific to the Police Department, the City Council approved the Lateral Police Officer Recruiting Incentive Program in 2019. While these incentives come with a cost, the benefits of filled positions far outweigh the expense. In 2025, the Police Department successfully hired 2 lateral Police Officers, which City staff believes was the result of the incentive program. The City also had two experienced officers choose to leave the Department for nearby agencies with similar programs, showing how competitive the job market is for public safety talent and how incentive programs can make a difference. Staff continue to enhance the recruitment process with targeted marketing flyers, expanded use of social media to promote available jobs, and outreach to specific professional associations and local schools and colleges to attract candidates specifically interested in local government career opportunities. From 2024 to 2025, the City improved its hiring time by shortening the hiring process by an average of 34 days. In March 2026, City of Arroyo Grande Recreation Services was named “Gold Best Place to Work” by the SLO Tribune Best of the Central Coast, an honor the City will highlight in its recruitment efforts. For calendar year 2025, the City’s retention rate was 92%, reflecting a strong ability to retain employees. The retention rate is calculated as the quantity of employees at the beginning of the calendar year, divided by the quantity of those employees who remained with the organization through the end of calen dar year. The average tenure for City employees is 9.1 years, demonstrating a stable workforce. To meet the changing desires of employees, the City incorporates several retention strategies including offering alternative 9/80 work schedules, and hybrid t elework options to help employees balance work and personal life. Employees are encouraged to use their paid time off to rest and recharge, reducing burnout and supporting a healthy work life balance. Second, the City has invested in professional developme nt and training programs to help prepare employees for career advancement as well as enhance employee engagement. Employees are also recognized formally through an employee recognition program. This ultimately leads to higher retention rates, as employees feel more valued, aligned with their roles, and connected to the City’s mission. The City is currently engaged in a Classification and Compensation study to ensure our compensation plan remains competitive within the local job market. Page 64 of 209 Item 11.a. City Council City Workforce Vacancies, Recruitment, and Retention Trends Presentation (Assembly Bill 2561) April 28, 2026 Page 5 With data now in place for key metrics related to vacancies, recruitment, and retention, the City can begin tracking year-over-year trends. Table 3 highlights areas of improvement as well as opportunities for continued progress. Table 3: 2024 vs. 2025 Vacancies, Recruitment and Retention Metrics Metric 2024 2025 Citywide vacancy rate as of December 31 7% 9.3% Average monthly vacancy rate 6% 5.8% Retirements 2 3 Vacancies filled 14 18 Average time to fill vacancy 117 days 83 days Total job applications received 220 409 Lateral Police Officers hired 2 2 Annual Staff Retention Rate 88% 92% Average Tenure of City Employees 8.6 years 9.1 years In closing, the City has made meaningful progress in reducing vacancies by shortening hiring timelines, adopting new recruitment strategies, and investing in employee development. These efforts will remain a priority for Human Resources, department heads, and supervisors across the organization. By continuing to focus on engagement, competitive compensation, professional growth, and recognition, the City can continue to foster an environment where talent not only thrives but stays long-term. ALTERNATIVES: The following alternatives are provided for the Council’s consideration: 1. Conduct a public hearing; and receive and file the City of Arroyo Grande Workforce Vacancies, Recruitment, and Retention Trends presentation for the year ending December 31, 2025 to comply with AB 2561; 2. Direct staff to present the status of vacancies and recruitment and retention efforts during a public hearing more than once per fiscal year. The law only requires such reporting on an annual basis before a budget is adopted, and providing updates more frequently does not allow for collection of sufficient data to present accurate and appropriately representative reporting; or 3. Provide other direction to staff. ADVANTAGES: The recommended action complies with the requirements of AB 2561. DISADVANTAGES: None. Page 65 of 209 Item 11.a. City Council City Workforce Vacancies, Recruitment, and Retention Trends Presentation (Assembly Bill 2561) April 28, 2026 Page 6 ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW: The presentation about workforce vacancies, recruitment and retention trends is not a project subject to the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”) because it has no potential to result in either a direct, or reasonabl y foreseeable indirect, physical change in the environment. (State CEQA Guidelines, §§ 15060 (c)(2) and (3), 15378.) PUBLIC NOTIFICATION AND COMMENTS: The Agenda was posted at City Hall and on the City’s website in accordance with Government Code Section 54954.2. ATTACHMENTS: 1. City of Arroyo Grande Workforce Vacancies, Recruitment, and Retention Trends presentation 2. Public Comment Received Page 66 of 209 Workforce Vacancies, Recruitment and Retention Trends (AB 2561) City of Arroyo Grande April 28, 202 6 ATTACHMENT 1 Page 67 of 209 Recommendation 2 1.Conduct a public hearing and receive and file the City of Arroyo Grande Workforce Vacancies, Recruitment, and Retention Trends presentation for the year ending December 31, 2025, to comply with Assembly Bill 2561 Page 68 of 209 Agenda 3 City-wide Workforce Vacancy Information Recruitment Statistics Hiring Issues Staff Retention Page 69 of 209 City-wide Workforce 86 Total Budgeted/Authorized full-time equivalent positions provide the following services to the public: •Community Development •Recreation Services •Police Services •Public Works •City Administration •Administrative Services •Human Resources •Legislative & Information Services 4Page 70 of 209 2025 Calendar Year Vacancies 5 Calendar Year 2025 Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec # of Vacancies Created 1 0 1 1 1 0 4 1 4 1 2 4 # of Vacancies Filled 1 2 2 1 0 0 1 2 5 1 2 1 # of Remaining Vacancies 6 4 3 3 4 4 7 6 5 5 5 8 # of Budgeted FTEs 86 86 86 86 86 86 86 86 86 86 86 86 % of Vacancies 7.0%4.7%3.5%3.5%4.7%4.7%8.1%7.0%5.8%5.8%5.8%9.3% •Average % of Vacancies at the End of Each Month: 5.8% •Highest % of Vacancies at the End of a Month: 9.3% •Lowest % of Vacancies at the End of a Month: 3.5% Page 71 of 209 Vacancies by Unit 6 City of Arroyo Grande Bargaining Group Number of Vacancies Budgeted FTEs Vacancy Rate Service Employees International Union (SEIU)3 30 10.0% Police Officers’ Association (POA)5 27 18.5% Unrepresented Management Group 0 23 0.0% Unrepresented Part-time Employees 0 6 0.0% Citywide Total 8 86 9.3% Vacancy Rates by Bargaining Group as of December 31, 2025 Page 72 of 209 Recruitment Statistics 7 Recruitment Type Number of Vacancies Average Time to Fill New Internal/External Recruitment 14 83 days Internal Promotional Recruitment 4 18 days Citywide Total 18 Calendar Year 2025 Vacancies Filled Improved hiring time: •Reduced time to fill metric by 34 days over the previous year 409 job applications recieved Page 73 of 209 Hiring Issues Obstacles Identified: •Rising demand for talent in certain sectors (especially Law Enforcement, Engineering) •High Cost of Living in SLO County •Geographical distance from a major metropolitan center •To address these obstacles, the City will: •Continue to highlight the Lateral Police Officer Hiring Incentive Program •Promote jobs available through targeted outreach •Spotlight 2026 Best Place to Work honors •Ensure our Compensation Plan remains competitive 8Page 74 of 209 Staff Retention Annual Staffing Retention Rate: 92% Average Tenure: 9.1 years 9 Reasons for Vacancies Created Number of Vacancies Newly Budgeted Positions/ Staffing Growth/Reclassification 1 Internal Promotional Opportunity 7 Retirement 3 Involuntary Separation 2 Voluntary Separation 7 Citywide Total 20 2025 Vacancy Reasons Page 75 of 209 Summary of Vacancy Report 10 Next Steps •Continue to keep vacancy rate low by reducing time to fill •Pursue new strategies to attract talent for difficult-to-fill positions •Invest in employee development and engagement Addressing Vacancies Recruitment Challenges Focus on Retention Page 76 of 209 SEIU Presentation 11Page 77 of 209 POA Presentation 12Page 78 of 209 ? Questions & DIscussiOn 13Page 79 of 209 Recommendation 14 1.Conduct a public hearing and receive and file the City of Arroyo Grande Workforce Vacancies, Recruitment, and Retention Trends presentation for the year ending December 31, 2025, to comply with Assembly Bill 2561 Page 80 of 209 Public Comment Page 81 of 209 BOARD OF DIRECTORS WILLIAM MANN President BRADLEY KLEIN Vice President NATALIA HEREDIA Treasurer LUPE ENRIQUEZ Secretary LAURA ROBINSON Executive Director SERVICE EMPLOYEES INTERNATIONAL UNION SANTA BARBARA OFFICE 350 S. HOPE AVE # A103 SANTA BARBARA, CA 93105 Phone: 805.963.0601 Fax: 805.963.8341 SANTA MARIA OFFICE 114 N. VINE STREET SANTA MARIA, CA 93454 Phone: 805.963.0601 Fax: 805.614.7620 April 21, 2026 SEIU Local 620 Written Public Comment for AB 2561 Public Hearing on Public Sector Vacancies, Recruitment, and Retention. Dear Mayor Russom and Councilmembers, Thank you for the opportunity to provide comment on behalf of SEIU Local 620. We want to acknowledge and commend the City for its continued focus on maintaining a low vacancy rate within our unit and the City as a whole. This is an important achievement, and we sincerely appreciate the dedication and effort that went into filling our much- needed public sector positions. Every vacancy addressed directly supports our members by easing workloads on an already lean crew, and helps to maintain the high quality of services our community depends on. As we recognize this achievement, we also want to emphasize the value of continued investment in recruitment and retention. Sustaining competitive wages, strengthening training pathways, and ensuring manageable workloads are essential to supporting long- term workforce stability. SEIU remains committed to collaborating with the City to ensure that employees have the tools and support they need to excel. We appreciate the transparency provided through Assembly Bill 2561 reporting, and we look forward to continuing our partnership in making the City of Arroyo Grande a place where dedicated public employees choose to build and grow their careers. Thank you for your time and for your ongoing service to our community. Sincerely, Nicole Bryant Field Representative SEIU Local 620 nicole@seiulocal620.org ATTACHMENT 2 Page 82 of 209