By Patrick Adrian EAGLE TIMES STAFF
Local police chiefs say their departments are being stretched dangerously close to a breaking point due to staffing shortages, overworked employees, and the loss of experienced officers to retirement or competitive job offers.
For several months Claremont and Newport Police Departments have been operating at low-to-minimum staffing levels due in part to ongoing challenges to build up the police force, according to local police chiefs.
“We often get close to being full-staffed, and then something happens and it goes away,” Claremont Police Chief Mark Chase told the Claremont City Council on Wednesday.
On paper, Claremont’s officer count may not appear troubling, though “the devil is in the details,” Chase said.
Currently the Claremont Police Department has 21 full-time officers filled out of 25 total positions. However, in actuality, only 15 to 16 of them have been on active duty, which has been the scenario since at least the start of summer, according to Chase.
Of the 21 officers, two officers have been deployed in the National Guard since January. Three officers are currently in the police academy and set to graduate next month.
Meanwhile, Chase has to worry about retaining his other 16 officers, who have had to carry the load to provide “24 hours per day, seven days per week coverage” in a busy police department.
The department has already expended 89 percent of what it budgeted for overtime pay only halfway through the fiscal year. In the last 10 months, three officers have compiled at least 300 hours each in overtime, according to Chase.
The cost of overtime hours is a lesser concern, as the savings from the unfilled positions help to offset the overtime costs. But the chiefs say they worry about the health, wellbeing, and morale of their officers.
“It’s not just that we don’t have enough people,” said Newport Police Chief Brent Wilmot. “Our officers are working longer hours by themselves and they are taking on higher caseloads, so their caseloads are piling up. And they are getting more and more tired, which makes it even more difficult to do their quality work.”
This wear on the officers combined with the nationwide shortage of officers and recruits is making it even harder for the local chiefs to stabilize their police force as exhausted officers may consider positions in departments that provide higher compensation or fewer hours.
“I know that other departments are approaching our officers and encouraging them to apply,” Chase said. “I have to find a way to combat this.”
The Newport Police Department has been weathering the same challenges as Claremont, Wilmot told the Eagle Times on Thursday.
The Newport department currently has three open positions, including one funded by a grant, Wilmot said. Though, in reality, the department is working with a shortage of five full-time officers, since two new hires are waiting to attend the police academy and cannot work patrol shifts alone until they are certified.
It takes between nine and 10 months from the date of hire for an officer to become certified, according to Wilmot. The wait time to start the academy is currently about two months and recruits need to complete a total of six to seven months in the academy and then field training before acquiring certification.
“So it may look like we are closing in on our capacity, but really we are down [about] five officers,” Wilmot said. “And that is really a substantial hit. It amounts to being down 30 percent to 40 percent in full-time officers.”
Newport has had to curtail services such as providing a school resource officer to the Newport School District to ensure adequate patrol duties. And like Claremont, Newport also has to work to retain its officers, who are similarly sought after by other police departments.
The demand for recruits is a regional and nationwide issue as departments are actively competing for the same recruits. This has led many agencies to shift their attention to luring already certified officers, particularly in departments like Claremont and Newport, whose officers typically acquire a diversity of experience during their employment.
“Our officers are very marketable,” said Wilmot, referring to Claremont as well as Newport. “They have had a ton of experience because our departments are so busy. They have been exposed to many different types of calls and are able to handle anything they may be confronted with.”
On the upside, these opportunities are partly why many officers enjoy working in Claremont and Newport, according to the chiefs. However, the diversity and experience of these opportunities provide open doors to higher paying jobs elsewhere.
Perhaps more importantly, Chase said, Claremont is losing its longest-tenured officers, resulting in a police force that is predominantly young and experienced.
Of Claremont’s 21 officers, only three officers have 10 or more years of experience, while 10 officers have less than four years of experience, according to Chase.
“The longer you have a police officer that does their job, the more experience they get,” Chase said. “They are safer, they know a lot more. When officers are learning they make mistakes [that] a seasoned officer might not [make].”
On Wednesday, Chase proposed the appropriation of $160,000 from his current budget to offer his 16 certified officers contractual retention bonuses of $10,000.
Under the contract, the officer would receive $10,000 in two separate installments of $5,000 each, one this month and a second installment in June 2023. In turn the officer would agree to remain in Claremont for the next three years or else return the money received.
Chase said these bonuses are designed to counter signing bonuses being offered from other departments.
Chase said the police union, the New England Police Benevolent Association Local 217, had no involvement in developing this initiative, though the chief presented the idea to the union representative and acquired their approval before proposing to the city council.
In presenting to the council, Chase acknowledged that additional compensation is not a long-term solution to the problem of overworked staff. Furthermore, offering retention bonuses might trigger disgruntled feelings in other city departments. But Chase is “trying to avert a potential crisis” and bonuses is one of the few incentives available to still be tried.
Wilmot said that police chiefs, who have no role in municipal contract negotiations with police unions, have to find creative or collaborative ways to create an appealing work environment for its officers. These approaches might be through the department’s equipment offerings, professional opportunities or cultivating a department that prioritizes the quality of life of its officers.
“It’s always better to ask ‘How are you?’ than ‘Who are you?’” Wilmot said.
The Claremont City Council voted 6-3 on Wednesday to approve the creation of police retention contracts.
reporter @eagletimes.com
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