Vallejo City Council considering pay raise for city attorney and dispatchers
VALLEJO –The Vallejo City Council is expected to give City Attorney Veronica Nebb a 20% pay raise while extending her contract until 2027.
The board will discuss the contract extension at its meeting on Tuesday evening. If approved, Nebb’s annual base salary will retroactively increase from $219,000 to $250,000 effective July 1. The contract provides salary increases of 3% for three consecutive years, which will ultimately bring Nebb’s annual base salary to $273,000 by July 2025. Combined with benefits, the total compensation is expected to reach $440,000. by July 2025.
City staff said the human resources department conducted a salary survey of similar agencies and found that the Vallejo City Attorney position “is below the market median of approximately 23 %”.
Nebb was originally hired in October 2020 and given a three-year contract which was due to end in November 2023. The new terms extended the contract from November 2023 to December 31, 2027. Nebb was attracted to the law firm Walter & Pistole, serving as senior assistant city attorney for the cities of Novato and Martinez, according to his biography on the firm’s website at the time.
She replaced Claudia Quintana, who retired in April 2020 after spending eight years as city attorney. The city’s chief assistant attorney, Randy Risner, was named acting city attorney in late January 2020 as the city began its search for a new city attorney.
In August 2020, the city announced that Risner, who had applied for the permanent position, would not be appointed as the permanent city attorney. He returned to the number two position in the city attorney’s office after Nebb was hired.
The Council should also increase the salaries of dispatchers
The Vallejo City Council will also be asked to approve pay increases for public safety dispatchers after city staff discovered that three job classifications are earning 23% below the market median.
City staff are recommending a one-time salary adjustment comprising 17% for Communications Operators I and II and 18% for Communications Supervisors.
Human Resources Director Rachel Ferguson confirmed the raise will cost the city $240,000 in the current fiscal year.
“In recent years, police and fire departments have struggled to recruit and retain qualified candidates, which has often resulted in staffing levels below desired standards,” Ferguson wrote in a staff report. “Based on exit interviews conducted by the human resources department, compensation was a significant factor leading to failed hires and the departure of employees to other agencies.”
In June, Local 1245 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers – the union representing some Vallejo workers in the public works, police, water and housing departments – openly backed a statement by the Vallejo Police Officers Association warning residents that the city is considering shutting down its night dispatch. service and move it to another agency due to lack of staff.
The VPOA represents sworn police officers, while the IBEW represents civilian employees within the police service.
The Vallejo Sun previously reported that the vacancy rate for dispatchers was dismal with eight vacant dispatcher positions and one supervisor position in April, meaning nearly half of budgeted dispatcher positions were unstaffed.
The Vallejo City Council meeting is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. Tuesday in the Vallejo City Hall Council Chamber at 555 Santa Clara Street.
Members of the public will be able to participate in person or remotely via Zoom.
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