The union representing frontline workers at San Jose's Animal Care Center urged the city to hire a new director from outside current ranks, citing risks to trust, morale, and service if leadership continuity persists. An internal survey showed the vast majority of staff support an external candidate to replace Jay Terrado, who took early medical retirement. The union formally requested Public Works Director Matt Loesch to use an external recruitment process. The shelter faced a scathing city auditor report documenting overcapacity, poor conditions, and an increase in animal deaths, which led to loss of its no-kill designation and City Council demands for improvements.
The union representing the frontline workers at San Jose's beleaguered Animal Care Center has implored the city to hire a new director from outside the ranks, warning that a failure to do so would erode trust, morale and service and perpetuate the very dysfunction the city claims to want to fix. Although the city is pushing forward with recommendations from a scathing audit that took the shelter to task for operating above capacity and poor conditions,
In a letter sent on Monday to Public Works Director Matt Loesch, the union released results of an internal survey, which found that the vast majority of participating staffers supported a new, outside voice as the city looks to hire a replacement for Jay Terrado, who was granted an early medical retirement in June. These sentiments, backed by the overwhelming numbers in our survey,
We respectfully urge the City to commit to an external recruitment process for the next permanent director of ACS. The staff at ACS deserves leadership that will restore integrity, accountability, and transparency to the shelter. The conditions and operation of the shelter have continued to raise concerns from residents and animal advocates for the past few years. Following numerous complaints and an uptick in animal deaths that resulted in the shelter losing its no-kill designation,
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