Title
Adoption of Resolution Establishing a Temporary Recruitment and Hiring Incentive Policy of $75,000 for Lateral, Academy Graduate and Entry Level Police Officers through Use of Existing Salary Savings. (Police 10031100)
Body
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: Jennifer Ott, City Manager
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Staffing at the Alameda Police Department (APD) is at a critically low level and this impacts public safety. The staffing deficit directly impacts APD's ability to deliver service in a timely and efficient manner and is not in line with best practices.
Currently, APD sworn staffing is down nearly 30% with aggregate sworn vacancies totaling 24 out of 88. These trends are being experienced throughout Alameda County (County), the state, and region. Although APD has hired 20 new Police Officers since June 2021, the rate of staffing attrition has outpaced the rate of staffing additions. APD and Human Resources (HR) staff have endeavored to recruit quality candidates by:
* Advertising regular job announcements;
* Streamlining hiring procedures to include holding the written exam, physical ability and oral board process on site and in 1 - 2 days; and
* Offering creative hiring bonuses and incentives such as matched/higher salary than previous employers, front loaded vacations, and lump sums of pay.
Even still, these strategies have not yielded the positive returns that were expected. There are several challenges in hiring quality candidates. As mentioned above, these challenges are being experienced throughout the industry at a significant rate. Considerations by quality candidates include:
* Housing affordability in and around the Alameda community;
* Full-time and in-person shift work; and
* The perceived stigma in policing.
APD recommends incentivizing a one-time surge in hiring quality candidates in order to have a significant positive impact on staffing numbers and public safety. Doing so will improve the deli...
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