WRPS still 34 officers short of its 2023 complement

Waterloo Regional Police under budget as it struggles to hire new officers

Waterloo Regional Police had spent $3.1 million less on wages than budgeted by April 1 due to staff shortages.

The Waterloo Regional Police Services’ first-quarter financial report was presented Wednesday morning to the police board.

On April 1, police were 57 officers short of the authorized complement, contributing to a $3.1-million surplus on wages in the first quarter.

The 57 officers do not include 23 officers hired in April, police Chief Mark Crowell said, bringing the officer shortage to 34.

The service is also short on approved civilian posts.

Full-time permanent civilian positions are also under the authorized complement. The service has a 2023 approved civilian complement of 402 full-time positions, but only 379 of those positions are filled, with 23 vacancies. That shortage is somewhat offset by 11.3 additional temporary full-time posts.

The Waterloo police service — like others across the province and the country — has struggled in recent years to hire the officers it needs to fill its approved officer complement. As a result, the service has posted annual budget surpluses.

The media attention on several recent police killings has added to the challenge, Crowell said.

“Some of the focus on the level of violence, danger that some of the officers face, is a bit of a current challenge,” he said.

“We’re in unprecedented times currently where the number of officers that have faced danger and lost their lives is currently a consideration for folks.”

Ten officers have been killed on the job in Canada since September 2022; six of the deaths were in Ontario and nine were homicides.

He also cited a diversified economy offering careers not previously available, as well as a need to develop positive relationships between police and young people so that they see policing as a viable career.

Hiring prospects have been improving in the past six months, Crowell said.

“We’re optimistic that, when we start to do projections about hiring that’s required to keep our organization afloat, that we’re on the cusp of some great breakthroughs,” he said.

Recruitment was an issue at Region of Waterloo council during budget talks earlier this year.

In February regional council narrowly approved an $18.3-million police budget increase to, in part, fund the hiring of 19 new officers. That was on top of the 35 new officers approved in 2022, which as of budget time, had not been fully hired.

Every additional officer approved requires adding half an additional civilian position into the budget for support.

The timing of hiring and recruitment challenges were an issue after police estimated they would have a $1-million surplus in 2023 because the officers wouldn’t be hired until later this year. The service had an average surplus between 2019 and 2021 of $3.3 million.

Also Wednesday, the board approved transferring a $1.8-million surplus from its general reserve fund to its capital and vehicle reserves because the general reserve was in excess of its $2 million target.

For the 2023 budget the board opted not to transfer $1.6 million from the general reserve fund to offset the tax increase, according to a board report in December.