Police holding hiring event this weekend

Process includes orientation, fitness appraisal, interview.

The Gwinnett County Police Department is always hiring new officers, but an event this weekend will give applicants a jump-start on the application process.

The department is holding a hiring event at its training center Saturday and Sunday. From 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day, applicants can complete a significant portion of the hiring process, including an orientation, physical fitness assessment and panel inter- view. It is recommended that candidates wear gym clothes.

Applicants must have at least a high school diploma or GED, but can get paid 3 to 6% more if they have an associate or bachelor’s degree. They also must be a U.S. citi- zen, pass a background investigation, have a driver’s license and be at least 20 at the time of application and 21 by the time they’re an officer.

Starting pay for Gwinnett County police officer trainees is $37,156 for those without a bachelor’s degree and $39,385 for those with a bachelor’s degree. Within a year, officer trainees are promoted to the rank of police officer senior as long as they have completed police academy and field training. That promotion comes with a salary increase to $41,538 for an officer without a bachelor’s degree and $44,030 for an officer with a bachelor’s degree. Once a candidate is hired, they can start right away. If they can’t immediately start the police academy, they will work in a precinct doing tasks such as clerical work until a new academy begins.

Those interested should preregister at GwinnettPo- liceJobs.com, but walk-ins are also welcome, according to a department Facebook post. The training facility is at 854 Winder Highway in Lawrenceville.