Pay disparities among police agencies hurt recruitment

Polls show that the public supports a strong, positive police presence. Regardless of race or demographics, citizens want more police, not fewer. But agencies across the state and the nation have seen a substantial increase in police departures — officers retiring or resigning in record numbers.

Among many factors — including a lack of support from local governments and secondguessing from prosecutors, the press, and the public — two reasons for the low morale and surging departures are noncompetitive salaries and disparities in benefits offered by different police agencies. Wages and benefits are major barriers to recruitment and retention, and disparities make it easier for one agency to “poach” officers from another. A statewide look at law enforcement wages and benefits is long overdue.

In rural upstate counties, many agencies pay less than an employee working at a Walmart warehouse. In Fulton County, for example, the starting rate for a sheriff ’s deputy is $24.00 an hour; the average base salary for a Walmart warehouse order filler/loader/unloader in Johnstown is $27.85 an hour, according to an employer-provided estimate listed on glassdoor.com. In Albany County, sheriff ’s deputies are paid less than Bethlehem and Guilderland police officers. In Guilderland, the entry-level annual salary for a police officer is $58,965. In Bethlehem, it’s $59,295. For a starting Albany County sheriff ’s deputy, the annual pay is $40,254.

The civil service test required for sheriffs and city, town and village police is the same across the state (with the exception of NYPD and the New York State Police). All applicants must take a psychological test, as required by the state, and pass a standardized background investigation. Police academies across the state all have the same required hours and training modules for police certification. State accreditation rules have minimum basic policies and procedures.

It defies logic that the requirements and training are uniform for all agencies, and

yet salaries differ dramatically from agency to agency.

Within a county, the formula for salaries of non-state police should include required minimum and medium salaries for all law enforcement officers in that county. Currently, officers across the board are moving to neighboring departments with better wages and benefits, gutting the agencies they leave. Staff shortages compound the problem by mandating overtime to cover short shifts, thereby negatively impacting the remaining officers.

People who take the same risks should receive the same pensions, but pension plans also vary. Over 95 percent of agencies in the state, including the NYPD and the New York State Police, have a 20-year retirement plan. The State Park Police, Department of Environmental Conservation officers, university police and many sheriff ’s offices have 25-year plans. A state law requiring a standard of a 20-year pension plan for all law enforcement officers would end this disparity, but Gov. Kathy Hochul has repeatedly vetoed such a proposal.

Another example of the gross disparity in benefits includes what’s referred to as a health insurance buyback. If an officer doesn’t use their insurance, they can receive a payout at the end of the year. It is hard to compete when one agency only offers $1,500 for the payout and another in a neighboring city offers $7,500. These types of benefits should be standardized as well.

In New York, the state provides aid for district attorneys’ salaries, along with funding for salaries for public defenders. Counties and municipalities should also receive state funding to increase salaries and benefits for law enforcement officers.

In her State of the State address, Gov. Hochul said, “My number one priority has always been, and will always be, to keep New Yorkers safe.” If that’s true, New York state should empanel a commission on police recruitment and retention to identify how to attract more dedicated, talented men and women to serve their communities, and how to better support the officers who already serve. The risks police face are great — including the potential loss of an officer’s life. Make their pay and benefits reflect their training and the risks.