DATE: May 21, 2025
TO: Honorable Mayor and City Councilmembers
FROM: Human Resources Department
TITLE: PUBLIC REPORT ON THE STATUS OF THE CITY OF OCEANSIDE’S EMPLOYEE VACANCIES; INCLUDING INFORMATION ON RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION EFFORTS
RECOMMENDATION
title
Staff recommends that the City Council receive a public report on the status of the City of Oceanside’s employee vacancies; including information on recruitment and retention efforts.
body
BACKGROUND AND ANALYSIS
Assembly Bill 2561 was recently signed into law and became effective on January 1, 2025. The law, which added Section 3502.3 to the California Government Code, requires the city to present at a public hearing before the City Council prior to the adoption of the new fiscal year budget, the status of any City employment vacancies, and recruitment and retention efforts. Moving forward, the Bill requires a similar report to be provided by staff and related public hearing on an annual basis.
Specifically, local governmental agencies are required to:
• Provide a yearly update to the City Council on employee vacancies, recruitment and retention efforts; and any obstacles encountered during the hiring process.
• Present additional information regarding vacancies upon request by an employee organization if the vacancy rate within a bargaining unit is at least 20%.
• Allow employee organizations to make presentations to City Council.
The current full-time vacancy rates are:
• City-wide (all full-time classifications): 7.56%
• Oceanside City Employees’ Association: 8.38%
• Management Employees of the City of Oceanside: 6.52%
• Oceanside Police Officer’s Association - Sworn: 4.41%
• Oceanside Police Officer’s Association - Non-Sworn: 22.39%
• Oceanside Police Management Association: 15.38%
• Oceanside Firefighter’s Association: 4.35%
• Oceanside Fire Management Association: 0.00%
• Oceanside Marine Safety Employees’ Association: 0.00%
• Western Council of Engineers: 15.00%
As provided for in Assembly Bill 2561, the employee association whose vacancy rates exceed the 20% threshold, Oceanside Police Officer’s Association - Non-Sworn, has requested the City of Oceanside provide the following information as part of this Hearing:
1. The total number of job vacancies within the unit.
2. The total number of applicants for vacant positions within the unit.
3. The average number of days to complete the hiring process from when a position is posted.
4. Opportunities to improve compensation and other working conditions.
The responsive information is as follows:
Oceanside Police Officer’s Association - Non-Sworn has 15 vacancies within the unit, out of a total of 67 positions. The vacant positions are as follows:
• 1 Community Services Officer
• 1 Public Safety Call Taker
• 2 Forensic Specialists
• 4 Public Safety Dispatchers
• 7 Police Records Technicians
The current total number of applicants for open positions is as follows:
• Community Services Officer: 31 applications received; position closed posting on May 9, 2025.
• Public Safety Dispatcher: 37 applications received; position closed for posting on May 2, 2025. The prior recruitment closed on March 28, 2025 and an additional 9 candidates have advanced to the Department Interview stage.
• Records Technician: 44 applications received; position closed for posting on May 2, 2025. The prior recruitment closed on March 28, 2025 and an additional 18 candidates have advanced to the Department Interview stage.
For vacancies in positions that are not currently being recruited for, the prior recruitments netted the follow results:
• Forensic Specialist: Recruitment closed June 28, 2024, with 67 applications received.
The position is not currently being recruited for due to lack of available trainers to train incoming employees. The plan is to open the recruitment for applicants mid-Summer of 2025.
The Public Safety Call Taker position is primarily utilized as a tool to ready incumbents for the Public Safety Dispatcher position and is not recruited for regularly.
The average number of days to complete the hiring process includes the average number of days a position is posted as open to solicit applicants, the notification and scheduling of the interview processes, completion of the interview processes and applicant selection, and applicant background check completion. The current average number of days from posting to start date is 140 days, or 4.67 months.
Efforts to improve working conditions, including compensation, occur in joint discussions with the Oceanside Police Officer’s Association - Non-Sworn Association, and the City and the Association continue to bring ideas forward to address recruitment and retention. The most recently Memorandum of Understanding entered into on July 1, 2024 includes pay range increases over the course of two (2) years of between 5% to 8%, dependent upon position. Additionally, certification pay was increased as was the City contribution to health insurance.
The City of Oceanside’s recruitment and retention efforts include:
• Utilization of specialized platforms for hiring purposes (LinkedIn, Indeed, Social Media, i.e., Facebook, and industry job boards).
• Attendance at various community hiring events, including college, military, high school, and career fairs.
• Internship programs, the EMT program, and the SkillBridge program for exiting servicemembers.
Human Resources will continue to monitor vacancy rates for each employee association and will comply with all requirements listed in Assembly Bill 2561.
FISCAL IMPACT
This item has no fiscal impact.
COMMISSION OR COMMITTEE REPORT
Not Applicable.
CITY ATTORNEY’S ANALYSIS
This report satisfies the requirements under Assembly Bill 2561, and therefore meets the standards of Government Code 3502.3.
end
Prepared by: Chelsea D. Phebus, Director of Human Resources & Risk Management
Reviewed by: Robert O’Brien, Deputy City Manager
Submitted by: Jonathan Borrego, City Manager