The Community
Gilroy is situated in south Santa Clara County at the southern tip of the San Francisco Bay Area, which is a dynamic urban area of 7,000 square miles, nine counties, 100 cities, and a population of 8.8 million, making it the fifth most populous metropolitan area in the United States. The City is part of the enterprising and technologically advanced San Jose/Silicon Valley sub-region and is within an hour’s drive of the scenic beauty of both the San Francisco and Monterey Bay Areas. Gilroy lies at the crossing of US Highway 101 and State Highway 152, giving it direct access to the San Francisco Bay Area, San Benito, Monterey, and Santa Cruz counties, and the Central Valley.
Gilroy enjoys a unique and beautiful location within this valley setting, situated in the eastern foothills of the Santa Cruz Range, and bordered by the Llagas and Uvas creeks that flow southward into the Pajaro River. Despite its growth, Gilroy continues to harbor a rural and historic character, especially in the older neighborhoods where buildings dating back to the mid-1800s can be found. There is a sense of abundant open space, due to the wide, tree-lined streets in the older neighborhoods, the large areas of undeveloped land surrounding the newer sections of town, and the City’s pristine mountain backdrop.
The town of Gilroy got its start in 1850 as a stage stop along the San Jose to Monterey Road. By the time it was incorporated in 1870, it was the third largest community in Santa Clara County. Today, the City spans 16 square miles and has a population of almost 60,000.
In its first hundred years, Gilroy’s economy was dominated by agriculture and agricultural processing. With the completion of the US Highway 101 by-pass in the early 1970’s, Gilroy became more accessible, and its growth rates rose sharply. While the agricultural sector has evolved, there are thousands of acres around Gilroy being farmed. In recent decades, manufacturing, retail, and service sectors began to grow at a faster rate. Today, Gilroy’s economy is diversified into non-agricultural commercial and industrial activities such as light manufacturing, wholesale operations, automobile sales, distribution centers, tourism (Gilroy Gardens, wineries, etc.) and large retail centers. To learn more about this dynamic city, please visit www.cityofgilroy.org.
The Organization
The City of Gilroy was incorporated as a Charter City in 1870. The City has a Council-Administrator form of government. The Mayor is directly elected, and they and the Council members serve staggered four-year terms. The 2026 election will be the first election with the established Council districts. Districts will be phased-in over the next two Council elections. The Council appointed City Administrator is responsible for financial and operational management of the City’s 298 full-time employees.
City Departments include City Administration, Community Development, Economic Development Finance/Information Technology, Fire, Human Resources/Risk Management, Police, Public Works, and Utilities. The FY2026 General Fund Operating Budget for the City of Gilroy is $74.3 million. Operational oversight of all City departments is provided by the City Administrator.
The Department
The Human Resources and Risk Management Department is responsible for fostering and supporting the organizational goals and values to attract, retain, and develop a professional, committed, and high-performing workforce that provides excellent external and internal customer service to our residents. In addition, the Department supports maintaining a safe workplace for employees and the use of best practices to prevent and reduce worker compensation and general liability claims. The Department ensures that the City complies with laws and regulations regarding employment and labor relations. The Department is staffed with five full-time and two part-time staff.
The Human Resources Director provides staff support to the City’s Personnel Commission. The Commission is a five-member body which reviews job descriptions and classification recommendations for city positions, serves as a neutral body to hear appeals of disciplinary matters regarding full-time city employees, and reviews the Human Resources Rules and Regulations, in accordance with the City Charter. Personnel Commissioners serve a four-year term.
The Position
The Ideal Candidate will be a hands-on public sector human resources manager who has a proven track record of being a strong strategic partner and advisor for City Administrator and Department Heads/Managers. They will be an empathetic and kind leader who truly cares about the employees, organization, community, and human resources team. They will set a good example and foster a positive culture that also includes accountability and achieving results.
In addition, they will have strong human resources and risk management skills including:
- Extensive labor relations experience including working with public safety employees and unions, labor negotiations, personnel investigations, and discipline. Experience with binding interest arbitration is desirable.
- The ability to keep Gilroy an employer of choice with strong employee relations experience including positive and cooperative problem-solving skills and serving as a performance management advisor.
- Ability to analyze complex issues, identify solutions, and implement sound recommendations while interpreting and applying federal, state, and local laws and regulations.
- Strong judgment and discretion with sensitive and confidential information.
- The ability to make decisions, sometimes tough decisions, coupled with a collaborative and inclusive management style.
- Being a team member who collaborates respectfully, communicates the reasoning behind decisions, stands their ground when needed, and works efficiently with operating departments on everyday matters.
- The ability to adapt to changing and competing priorities along with the ability to work confidently and collaboratively with the City Administrator.
- Is politically astute and understands the political implications while remaining apolitical.
- Strong outward communication skills to include leading and facilitating difficult conversations and resolving conflicts. Must be comfortable making presentations to employees, managers, department heads, Personnel Commission, and the City Council and must be able to field challenging questions.
- The ability to work through problems and knows when to advise the City Administrator and/or department head or manager on issues requiring their attention.
- The ability to evaluate risk, consider the big picture, but pay attention to the important details.
- Strong leadership skills including a positive visionary approach to the future.
- Highly customer service-oriented with excellent interpersonal and emotional intelligence skills, and able to engender trust and credibility.
- Knowledge of leaves and leave laws including workers’ compensation leaves (LC 4850), Family Care and Medical Leave, California Family Rights Act, Pregnancy Disability Leave, and all applicable facets of the Americans with Disability Act including the interactive process.
- The ability to provide lead staff support to Personnel Commission or other similar Council-appointed body.
- Experience with risk management including workers’ compensation, general liability, property, claims management, advising departments on risk issues, and working with risk pools.
- Able to step in and assist staff with a busy workload including public safety recruitments, promotion processes, executive searches, labor negotiations, and other projects.
- Knowledge of ERP/Human Capital Management systems.
Experience And Training
Any combination of education and experience equivalent to (equivalency determined at the sole discretion of the City of Gilroy):
- Bachelor's Degree from an accredited college or university with a major in human resources management, organizational development, business administration, public administration, political science, psychology, or a related field of study. A Master’s degree from an accredited college or university in public administration, business administration, organizational development, human resources management or a related field of study is highly desired.
- Ten years of increasingly responsible and related professional-level, full-time, paid experience in public sector human resources management or closely related field, including at least five years at a management level (i.e. Director, Assistant Director, Deputy Director, or Manager) that has included management/supervisory, operational, and administrative responsibilities. Human Resources experience with a full-service municipal agency that has included public safety departments is highly desired. Experience in the field of public sector risk management highly desired.
- Current International Public Management Association-Senior Certified Professional (IPMA-SCP) Certification, Human Resources Certification Institute (HRCI) Senior Professional in Human Resources Certification, and Certified Labor Relations Professional (CLRP) Certification are desirable.
- Strong computer skills to include Microsoft Office Suite, Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Human Capital Management (HCM) system, applicant tracking system such as NeoGov Insight, and onboarding system such as NeoGov ON.
The Compensation
The annual salary range for this opportunity is $204,675 - $281,132. It is expected that the new Human Resources Director will start at the front half of the range and move to the top through performance. A candidate with prior public sector Human Resource Director experience may be an exception. A 3% salary increase is scheduled for July 1, 2026, and July 1, 2027.
The City Also Offers An Attractive Benefits Package Including
Retirement
CalPERS 2.5% at 55 pension plan for "classic" members and 2% at 62 for "new" members. The City pays the full employer portion of the retirement contribution for "classic" members and 50% of the total normal cost for "new" members. The "classic" member contribution of 8% is a pre-tax payroll deduction; "new" members shall pay 50% of the total normal cost as set by CalPERS.
Health Allowance and Flexible Benefits PlanDepending upon the number of dependents the health allowance ranges from $1,141.80 to $3,015.28 per month for core health benefits. Subject to specific rules, a cash back program ($500 per month) is also available with proof of other medical coverage. City employees participate in the PERS Health Program, and may choose their medical coverage from a variety of providers. The City's flexible benefits plan includes medical and dental coverage as core benefits. A range of optional benefits including vision care and medical and dependent care accounts are also available. A term life insurance policy equal to annual salary, long-term disability plan, and an employee assistance plan are provided at City expense.
Vacation, Sick Leave, HolidaysAnnual vacation ranges from two to four weeks per year, based on years of City of Gilroy service. Employees accrue eight hours of sick leave each month. Employees receive 44 hours of personal leave time and 56 hours of administrative leave time in July of each fiscal year which must be used during the fiscal year. Department heads have the option to cash out up to 100 hours of leave time once per fiscal year The City observes 11 paid holidays each year.
Medicare/Social Security
Employees participate in Medicare (1.45% for both the employer and employee) as this is a mandated federal program. City of Gilroy does not participate in Social Security.
PayrollAll City employees are paid monthly, on the first business day of each month for the prior calendar month via direct deposit.
The Recruitment Process
To Apply For This Key Position And Exciting Career Opportunity, Please Submit a Current Resume With Month And Year Of Employment And Compelling Cover Letter Through Our Website At
Peckham & McKenney
www.peckhamandmckenney.com
Resumes are acknowledged within two business days. Contact Roberta Greathouse at 831.998.3194, toll-free at 866.912.1919, or via email to Roberta@PeckhamandMcKenney.com if you have any questions regarding this position or the recruitment process.
Search Schedule
Filing Deadline:March 29, 2026
Preliminary Interviews (telephonic): April 9 & 10, 2026
Recommendation to City:April 20- 24, 2026
Panel Interviews (In-Person): May 15, 2026
Finalist Interviews (In-Person):May 22, 2026
These dates have been confirmed, and it is recommended that you plan your calendar accordingly.
