City OKs incentives to help recruit, retain officers
Citing a need to address a nationwide crisis in recruiting new police officers and retaining those already on staff, Tehachapi Police Chief Kent Kroeger on May 2 asked the City Council to approve a recruitment program that includes a variety of incentives and could cost the city up to $80,500.
The council responded enthusiastically, voting 5-0 to approve the program.
“We have to do this,” Councilmember Susan Wiggins said following the chief’s presentation. “We have to, at least, be competitive, because if we don’t have a recruitment program, nobody’s going to come.”
According to the staff report provided by the chief, the department currently has two vacant police officer positions and he anticipates the need to add four additional officers and one police sergeant over the next five years. The fiscal impact of the program is based upon those estimates and could change if additional employees leave the department.
THE PROGRAM
The chief said the cost of training new recruits is significantly more than hiring experienced officers (lateral transfers) from other jurisdictions. For this reason, he recommended offering a $10,000 signing incentive to lateral police officers who successfully complete the hiring process (including background investigation and psychological and physical examinations). The incentive would be paid over two years — $5,000 in the first full pay period of employment, $2,500 in the first full pay period after completing probation and $2,500 in the first full pay period after completing two years of service.
Another incentive for lateral police officers is a vacation credit of 40 hours upon hire.
In order to qualify for a lateral hire, applicants must be employed as a police officer in California or outside of California but with
a California POST Basic Course Waiver certificate. They must also possess a Basic Certificate issued by the California State Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST), possess and maintain firearms qualification and have or obtain a valid California
Driver’s License by the time of appointment.
Previously, the chief said, the department established a new classification of “Police Officer Trainee.” This classification can be used to attract entry-level applicants and those completing the hiring process can be sent through a California POST Basic Academy course.
The recruitment program approved by the council includes a $5,000 signing incentive for this classification. Candidates who successfully complete the hiring process and accept an offer of employment will be paid a $2,000 signing incentive in the first full pay period of employment following graduation from the police academy, $1,500 in the first full pay period following completion of employment, and another $1,500 in the first full pay period upon completion of two years of service with the department.
EMPLOYEE REFERRAL
Kroeger said the traditional “pipelines” to a law enforcement career — including individuals from police families or the military — are declining. Because of this, he hopes to incentivize “every officer and professional staff member of the department” to recruit new officers.
He said he believes police work is the greatest profession in the world and Tehachapi is a great place to work. With this in mind, he’d like to encourage existing employees to engage in active recruitment efforts.
Under the plan approved by the council, existing employees of the city who refer a lateral police officer who successfully completes the hiring process and accepts an offer of employment will receive $1,500 in the first full pay period of employment for the new employee.
Employees who refer a police officer trainee candidate will receive the same bonus ($1,500) in the first full pay period following the new officer’s successful graduation from the academy.