Recruiting Police Officers

This article is the first of five parts that will touch on recruiting. Parts two through five include hiring, training, continuing education and retention.

In recent years, law enforcement agencies have had difficulty finding qualified applicants. Locally for example, only 4 percent of police applicants get hired. They fail the written exam, the physical agility test, the personal history statement, oral interview, background investigation, psychological or medical examinations. So why is recruiting people that can pass the stringent requirements so difficult for law enforcement agencies? The primary reasons for applicant failure in San Diego are low academic performance in reading and writing, weak fitness levels, and deficits in character and behavior. The key is to find people that want to do the job and are qualified to do the job.

For starters, police work is challenging and not everyone is cut out for it. Law enforcement agencies must uphold the highest standards of professionalism. They must find applicants who can do the same and who can provide public protection, be trustworthy, possess high ethical standards, and be physically and mentally able to carry out their duties.

It used to be that law enforcement officer positions were easy to fill. In decades past, law enforcement careers were the epitome of a positive public service career that provided a good living and retirement. Today’s challenges in recruiting stem from cuts to pay and benefits, cuts to pensions, and a decline in the public’s attitude toward law enforcement. In addition other issues come from generational differences among recruiters and recruits whose work priorities are different than their predecessors.

Today’s recruiting techniques, which are focus on improved salary, benefits, and time off have succeeded to some degree. But recruiters also have the added burden of diffusing negative public perceptions of police and focusing on the opportunities of a fulfilling career. Peace officers can make a difference in the communities they serve by providing public safety, by mentoring young people, and by providing community empowerment through solving crimes and providing community policing. Law enforcement agencies need to do a better job in advertising these attributes.

Gone are the days when police organizations simply used advertising agencies and newspaper ads to recruit new officers. Today’s methods rely on job fairs, agency websites, social media, other online tools and word of mouth. Some police agencies will even give an officer who refers a successful candidate a day or two off as a thank you for getting the recruit into the organization.

Attracting qualified candidates takes time and resources. Careful screening and background checks are required to make sure applicants meet the minimum standards and are truly interested in police work. The objective is to recruit potential police officers who can not only meet entry level requirements, but who can successfully complete training academy requirements and the probationary period. In larger agencies such as the San Diego Police Department or the Sheriff’s Department, recruiting units have the primary responsibility of attracting candidates to their agencies. Smaller agencies often assign this task to patrol officers as a collateral duty. Regardless of how an agency decides to distribute recruitment responsibilities, having the right officers in these positions is the cornerstones of success.

Recruiting Units

In larger agencies, recruiting units have the primary responsibility of attracting candidates to their agencies. The amount of resources and financial abilities of recruitment units vary from agency to agency. Smaller agencies often have individuals, even regular patrol officers, assigned to the task of recruitment in addition to their other duties. Conversely, many large agencies have officers solely dedicated to the task of recruiting. Regardless of how an agency decides to distribute recruitment responsibilities, proper selection and training of recruitment officers are cornerstones of success.

Recruiter selection begins with identifying officers with a demonstrated interest in the role. These individuals should view their assignment as desirable and career enhancing, possess excellent people skills, and be advocates of their departments. After being selected, it is imperative that recruiters receive training about how to conduct their duties to maximize their effectiveness. Administrators should establish a recruitment budget that funds all of the necessary activities and materials for successful recruiting. In addition to providing the actual financial means of recruiting, the establishment of a budget demonstrates the administrator’s ongoing commitment to recruiting and by default the future of the organization.

Tracking recruitment performance is another important component of ensuring a recruiting unit is operating at an efficient level. Recruitment units should be evaluated on a regular basis to ensure goals are being met and to discuss successes and failures in recruiting. One way of tracking performance and gathering data can occur during at the beginning of the hiring process through the use of simple surveys. Agencies should request that applicants fill out surveys or questionnaires specific to their agencies, such as why the applicant is interested in law enforcement and how the applicant heard about the job opening. By polling applicants, recruiters are better equipped with data and information about their recruiting successes and deficiencies and which sources are best.

In order for existing officers to more effectively recruit applicants to their agencies, they should be educated on basic information related to employment at their agencies. This information should include material about the hiring process, benefits of being a police officer at that agency, and how to contact the department for more information. Additionally, officers should be provided with recruitment materials, which include basic information such as salaries and benefits, that can be readily given to potential applicants. To further reinforce the importance of all members of the agency engaging in recruitment, administrators should develop an incentive program. This program would provide incentives to all employees for recruiting new officers to the agency.

Recruitment materials and events are important components of successful officer recruitment. Some common avenues of distribution include printed handouts, billboards, newspapers, magazine, radio, television, Internet, and mailings. Events often attended include job fairs, college fairs, and military fairs. Last fall, I had the pleasure of working with the National University Center for Justice and Homeland Security at a law enforcement career day. Partnering with a university or a college should be a natural choice for police agencies. In National University’s case, they provided space, tables, chairs, refreshments and marketed the event to students in their programs across the region. In all, 28 federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies and two regional police academies attended.

Agency websites should be easily navigated and provide sufficient information for potential applicants to learn basic facts about a specific agency and how to apply. Each agency must evaluate the workforce in their communities to determine which materials and events are likely to be most successful. Regardless of the recruiting medium used, research has repeatedly shown that citizens are attracted to law enforcement for the public service aspect of the work.

LAW ENFORCEMENT QUARTERLY VOLUME 39, NO. 1 | WINTER 2019