Special Notice / Hearing: None__
Vote Required: Majority
To: Honorable Board of Supervisors
From: Michelle Kuka, Interim Human Resources Director
Subject: Update on Position Vacancies and Recruitment and Retention Strategies
RECOMMENDATION:
title
Conduct a public hearing in compliance with Government Code § 3502.3 regarding County of San Mateo vacancies and recruitment and retention strategies:
A) Open public hearing
B) Close public hearing
C) Accept an update on County of San Mateo vacancies and recruitment and retention strategies, in compliance with Government Code § 3502.3.
body
BACKGROUND:
On September 22, 2024, Governor Newsom signed into law Assembly Bill 2561, codified in Government Code § 3502.3, that requires public agencies to present a status of vacancies by bargaining unit at least once per fiscal year, prior to the adoption of the annual budget. During the public hearing, the County must present vacancy rates, recruitment and retention efforts, and if applicable, identify any necessary changes to policies, procedures, and recruitment activities that may remove obstacles in the hiring process.
The statute also allows recognized employee unions the option to present at the public hearing. If the number of vacancies within a single bargaining unit is at least 20% of the total number of authorized full-time positions, the applicable union may also request that the County provide more detailed information on that unit during the public hearing, addressing the total number of job vacancies, the total number of applicants for vacant positions, the average number of days to complete the hiring process, and opportunities to improve compensation and other working conditions.
In April 2026, notices were sent to all County employee unions providing our labor partners notice of the public hearing and describing bargaining unit vacancy rates.
DISCUSSION:
The County of San Mateo vacancy rate is at 12% as of March 29, 2026. This is a slight increase from the FY 2024-25 vacancy rate of 11%, however it is within the range of vacancies over the last few years, and due to recruitment and retention strategies approved by your Board, the rate has decreased from a high of 14% in FY 2022-23. Typically, the vacancy rate is higher at the end of March due to more retirements during this time, and the vacancy rate is expected to decrease by the end of the fiscal year as the resulting vacancies are filled. In addition, the increase this year is primarily due to internal promotions and positions held for development opportunities, additional authorized positions and an increase in retirements and resignations in March.
As of March 29, 2026, the four bargaining units with a vacancy rate exceeding 20% are:
• American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Communication bargaining unit, which includes Communication Dispatch Coordinators, Communication Dispatchers and Supervising Communication Dispatchers.
• Probation Detention Association (PDA), which includes the classifications of Group Supervisors and Deputy Probation Officers.
• Probation Detention Association (PDA) Institution Services, which includes Institution Services Managers at Probation.
• Organization of Sheriff’s Lieutenants, which represents the Lieutenants at the Sheriff’s Office.
|
Bargaining Unit |
Total Positions |
Vacancies |
% of Vacancies |
|
AFSCME: Communications Unit |
63 |
13 |
20.63% |
|
PDA: Group Supervisors and Deputy Probation Officers |
164 |
81 |
49.39% |
|
PDA: Institution Services Manager |
10 |
4 |
40.00% |
|
Organization of Sheriff’s Lieutenants |
15 |
3 |
20.00% |
The Public Safety Communications (PSC) unit has historically experienced high vacancy rates in the Dispatcher series due to the highly specialized nature of the role and the demands of the position. Over the past year, PSC has made strong progress in reducing the vacancy rate by implementing process improvements in partnership with Human Resources. While these changes have strengthened the hiring pipeline, the unit continues to balance recruitment with ongoing turnover.
The Probation Department has maintained certain vacancies as part of a strategic workforce approach in response to evolving legislative requirements and policy changes. However, this year they have twenty-six (26) candidates in the background process, and additional recruitment efforts are underway.
The Lieutenant vacancies resulted from internal promotions to Captain. As of the date of this memo, the Sheriff’s Office has already made appointments to backfill behind these promotions.
To view vacancy rates for all County bargaining units, please refer to Attachment A.
Recruitment and Retention Strategies:
To attract top talent and remain a competitive employer, the County continues to identify and invest in innovative strategies that strengthen its hiring and retention practices. Departments are offering meaningful work, skills and career development, well-being initiatives, including mental health and financial wellness resources, recognition, and a flexible work environment consistent with business needs. Additionally, we continuously look to streamline and expediate our hiring process and to evaluate salaries and benefits to ensure we remain competitive.
While we have seen improvements, the County continues to face some challenges in our hard-to-fill positions primarily due to factors including the competitive labor market, high cost of living, limited affordable housing, long commutes, and an evolving work environment. To address these challenges, the Human Resources Department continues to collaborate with departments to implement a range of recruitment and retention strategies. Recruitment efforts focus on expanding County employer-brand marketing and social media engagement; offering hiring incentives for hard-to-fill positions; implementing process improvements and innovation; improving the candidate experience through technology and skills-based hiring; and increasing accessibility to opportunities. Retention efforts focus on enhancing career mobility, expanding training and development programs, and promoting employee well-being and career growth.
Some of the specific recruitment strategies include:
• Developing “earn while you learn” programs that would serve as trainee pipelines for hard-to-fill roles (Stationary Engineer) and create clear pathways into public service careers.
• Expanding targeted second-career recruitment by increasing outreach to military veterans and their spouses while strengthening partnerships with military transition programs/internships that create pathways into public service careers.
• Advancing skills-based hiring by moving beyond educational requirements and instead emphasizing demonstrated competencies.
• Exploring partnerships with community colleges to build direct pipelines into County roles such as social workers.
• Organizing a community career fair to connect job seekers with public sector employers and expand awareness of meaningful career opportunities in public service.
• Partnering with hiring departments to reimagine onboarding and new-hire training processes to accelerate hiring timelines and expand training capacity to support the timely integration of new hires.
Additional specific retention strategies include:
• Encouraging stay interviews to proactively engage high performing employees.
• Empowering managers with practical toolkits and resources to support effective team leadership, including onboarding, inclusive hiring practices, succession planning, and employee career development.
• Investing in a new learning management system with more robust capabilities that will enable employees to take an active role in their upskilling and career development through accessible, on-demand learning resources.
• Hosting a Countywide career development summit to provide employees with resources, tools, and opportunities to explore career pathways, enhance skills, and support long-term growth within the County.
• Strengthening holistic well-being at the workplace and exploring additional mental health and financial health resources.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no fiscal impact.