Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Workforce topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Solano County HR warns of persistent vacancies in nursing and clinical roles; outlines recruitment steps
Summary
Human resources presented a required annual vacancy and recruitment report showing a countywide vacancy rate of about 11.4% (data to 02/28/2025), with nurses and clinical roles above 20%. HR described recruitment and retention steps including NEOGOV postings, career fairs, targeted incentives and tuition reimbursement.
Solano County’s human resources director told the Board of Supervisors that the county faces continued hiring challenges in clinical and specialty roles and outlined a set of recruitment and retention actions aimed at narrowing gaps.
Nydra Edwards, the county’s human resources director, presented the annual position‑vacancy report required under Government Code section 3502.3 (added by AB 2561). The report uses data through Feb. 28, 2025, and shows a countywide vacancy rate of 11.4 percent; two bargaining units (nurses labeled Unit 2 and clinicians such as psychiatrists and dentists labeled Unit 11) exceed a 20 percent vacancy threshold that triggers additional reporting and outreach.
Edwards highlighted that a senior public health nurse position took about 305 days on average to fill in 2024, reflecting tight labor markets for specialty public‑sector clinical roles. She cited contributing factors documented in a UC Berkeley report and county observation: a post‑COVID labor shift, population loss in California, high demand for certain occupations, and the immediate‑cash tradeoff workers evaluate when choosing jobs (workers prioritize take‑home pay and housing costs over longer‑term public‑sector benefits).
To respond, HR has implemented a number of steps: moving job postings to NEOGOV (governmentjobs.com) to widen the applicant pool; returning to in‑person career fairs; reviewing comparable jurisdiction pay scales; expanding internship and pipeline programs (including targeted outreach to junior high and community college students, foster youth and veterans); offering tuition reimbursement up to $5,000 per year and up to 50% release time for approved courses; targeted hiring incentives and relocation assistance (Edwards cited a $5,000 relocation allowance and an example incentive of $100,000 spread over five years for clinic physicians under a managed‑care sponsor grant); and allowing advanced step salary placement for external hires to better match private‑sector offers.
Supervisors asked for follow‑up data about the actual impact of incentives, whether nationwide active recruiting could be funded, and how unmet vacancies affect service levels (including reliance on contractors and overtime). County staff acknowledged some services may be reduced or covered by contractors when positions are vacant, and said they are pursuing active recruiting tools and classification studies to modernize minimum qualifications.
Public commenters — including SEIU representatives and county employees — described local impacts of vacancies and urged competitive pay and retention strategies to reduce burnout.
The presentation was received as an informational report; the board did not take action beyond accepting the presentation and discussing next steps for budget season and classification updates.
