Fort Oglethorpe PD rehires retiree in a part-time role
The Fort Oglethorpe Police Department has brought back one of its recent retiree to help out while the agency makes staffing transitions.
Officer Mitchell Moore, who retired from the department in July, will rejoin the agency temporarily after the City Council approved contracting him through a staffing company during its Sept. 10 meeting.
During the meeting, Chief Mike Helton explained that due to recent retirements, a lot of the department’s administrative duties could use Moore’s attention and experience.
“The police department has a need right now as we are transitioning with our staffing shortages and trying to find additional officers,” Helton said. “We’ve had a couple of retirements, some of those in vital positions that were in administration in our department, and we want to ensure that the tasks that they do are continuing and that we don’t suffer in some of those critical areas.”
When Moore retired in July, Capt. Gary Mcconathy did so as well. Then, last month, Capt. Steve Blevins retired after 29 years of service.
Helton explained that Moore’s desire to work parttime and the agency’s need for help matched up well. “Mitchell is looking for a part-time job, so we said ‘we still have a need and you are looking for a part-time duty…we may could maybe combine something here and you could continue to serve your city and accomplish one of our needs as we continue the process of promotions and filling staff positions,’” Helton explained.
Helton admitted that there were some minor issues that needed to be ironed out before Moore could come back.
“We looked at Mitchell’s situation and found that due to his retirement, he couldn’t serve as a continuing employee,” Helton said. “The retirement system advised that he could do this one of two ways, and one of them is that if he was employed through a staffing agency. We submitted to the staffing agency that we’ve discussed options with before, and we have this as a temporary position.”
The part-time contract is for Moore to work for the department in a part-time capacity between now and Dec. 21 at the latest, and would pay him a maximum amount of $11,907 during that span.
The board unanimously approved the hire, and Helton said that the work might not go until December, which could cause Moore’s dollar figures to change.
“We expect that this is going to come in in the $10,000s, and that it won’t be the $ 11,900, but we wanted to make sure that we cover everything possible,” Helton said. “Mitchell took this position with the consideration that it may last a month, but that it may go as far as the end of Dec.”
Helton said Moore’s 20-plus years of experience and knowledge of the department’s inner workings makes the hire a perfect fit.
“We need to make sure we have those services continuing in our department so that our things stay running and so we don’t suffer,” Helton said. “Mitchell is prepared to do an excellent job; he has things that other people trying to come in can’t do. He has security awareness clearances for GCIC and intelligence systems, he has knowledge of our front office operations already … he has knowledge of how our systems work, so he’s a natural fit to fill our need.”
Finally, Helton says the hire saves the department money by using the staffing company in lieu of making a regular outside hire.
“What we’ll be paying through this contract for this four-month period, if we were to use the whole four months, is almost half of what we would be paying him if he was on payroll when you put his salary and benefits combined,” Helton said.