New Piedmont Fire Chief To Be Hired by City Council
Bret Black is scheduled to be appointed by the Piedmont City Council as Piedmont Fire Chief at a starting salary of $193,164. The appointment and employment conditions resolution will be considered at the Monday, September 17, 2018, Piedmont City Council meeting, 7:30 p.m., City Hall. The meeting will be broadcast live via Cable Channel 27 and the City website under videos. See full employment agreement linked below.
The Council selected Black after interviewing two of the 27 applicants for the position of Fire Chief. Upon Council appointment, Bret Black will serve as Fire Chief, effective October 1, 2018.
The Fire Chief vacancy occurred when Fire Chief Warren “Bud” McLaren announced his intention to retire, effective July 6, 2018. McLaren had served the City of Piedmont for thirty years.
The City Council retained the services of Peckham & McKenney, a Sacramento based executive search firm. Peckham & McKenney advertised the employment opportunity extensively, using personal outreach, traditional print and electronic marketing, as well as social media. As a result of the recruitment efforts, 27 applicants submitted resumes for consideration. After reviewing each of the resumes and conducting on-line research on applicants who appeared most qualified, the recruiter selected twelve candidates to undergo screening interviews.
The City Council interviewed two pre-screened finalists and selected Bret Black.
“The employment resolution proposed for Council consideration contains all elements common to other Department Heads. The proposed annual salary is $193,164, which is the amount earned by Chief McLaren upon his retirement. Should the City Council approve the appointment and the resolution, Mr. Black’s first day with the City will be on Monday, October 1, 2018.”
“The City Council wishes to acknowledge the special public service rendered by the City’s management personnel. Management personnel consists of all department heads and the City Administrator. Under the operational coordination of the City Administrator, management personnel are responsible for producing the quality and effectiveness of City services, as required by the City Council.”
There will be a 3% annual salary increase for Black during the term of the resolution.
3.1 Salary – Monthly: The monthly rate of pay for the Fire Chief is $16,097. The rates of pay shown reflect the following cost-of-living increases during the term of this Resolution:
- % Increase Monthly Effective 7/1/2019 3% $16,580
- Effective 7/1/2020 3% $17,078
- If, during the term of this Resolution, any other bargaining unit is offered a cost of living increase greater than the increases shown above for the same fiscal year, then the difference between the increase for the other bargaining unit and the increase provided under this Resolution will take effect for the Fire Chief.
The City Administrator will make recommendations on future compensation for consideration and action by the City Council.
THE CITY COUNCIL RESOLUTION ADHERES TO THE CITY CHARTER BY STATING COUNCIL AUTHORITY FOR BOTH HIRING AND FIRING OF THIS KEY EMPLOYEE.
“10.2 Termination: Pay Upon termination or resignation requested by the City Council, the City will provide the employee at least one (1) month’s pay and benefit coverage as set forth in Sec. 3 hereof, or more at its discretion. This section would not apply in the event of the employee’s voluntary resignation or removal from office involving conviction of a felony, gross negligence or dereliction of duty, dishonest or immoral conduct, intemperance which interferes with job performance or conviction of a misdemeanor involving moral turpitude.”
READ the full staff report and proposed compensation agreement linked below:
http://www.ci.piedmont.ca.us/html/govern/staffreports/2018-09-17/appoint-fire-chief.pdf
A 3% annual increase exceeds the 2% maximum annual increase in advalorem property tax mandated by Prop. 13. Thus, Council is going to be compelled to renew and escalate the Municipal Services parcel tax AGAIN! Running the City budget on a never-ending deficit is a sure way to put us all at risk of loosing critical services as well as property values. Don’t accept this!