LANCASTER, S.C. — The Lancaster Police Department is getting a boost in its recruitment efforts.
The boost comes after the city passed its recent budget, increasing the starting salary from $35,000 to $50,000, according to Police Chief Don Roper.
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“As of August of last year, we were 13 officers short at the police department," Roper said. "So, we started looking at ways to try to revamp our recruiting and retention of officers.”
Around the country, a survey by the Police Executive Research Forum, shows more officers have resigned or retired since the pandemic.
Roper said the search for workers can be particularly challenging for rural departments like his.
“Money's not everything, but being able to be competitive with other area law enforcement agencies is really important," Roper said, "because all of us are trying to recruit from the same pool of qualified applicants."
Over the past 10 months, Roper said the department has managed to bring 16 new officers on board, but lost some officers they already had to other agencies.
While, he says, they're now nearly fully staffed and continue to be able to respond to emergencies, they're hopeful the new starting salary will help lighten the turnover.
“We can spend a little bit of time, get to know our community. Try to be problem solvers, rather than just going from one call to the next," Roper said. "The more we have staff, the more we’re able to work with our community to find ways to make the quality of life better.”
Contact Kayland Hagwood at khagwood@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.