In today’s environment, the hiring and retention of law enforcement officers are difficult. Crisp County Sheriff’s Office has a stringent process that each applicant must go through before being hired. We are in hopes that this process will leave us with the most qualified individual seeking a career in the profession and not just one who is looking for a paycheck.

Open positions leave us with increased cost in overtime and an environment inside the detention facility that strains those who are present every day to do the job.  If it is a certified position, then we are concerned about the decreased services to the community.  We invest a lot in a recruit in both time and money.  We must consider the cost of uniforms, training and the salary until the person is up to speed with the agency.

The Crisp County Sheriff’s Office has turned to Job fairs, advertising in out of town outlets as well as social media to reach those who are interested in a career of service. Diversity is critical; we must try and employ  individuals who are reflective of our community.  We are fortunate in Crisp County to have a Board of Commissioners who understands that for each certified deputy lost we spend an estimated $65,000. To replace, not counting the 

experience we lose. Recently the salaries for both starting Detention Officers and Deputies have been raised to be competitive in the local market.

In a time when it is only going to get more difficult to hire new personnel, we must find a way to retain that personnel; we must market our agency and provide candidates with incentives that will attract and retain those willing to work nights, holidays, miss family events and more importanly, risk their lives every day. We are proud of our recent hires and those that have returned to the career.

In the past 60 days we have mailed out 22 applications, and another seven picked up.We have hired nine individuals in the same period. We currently have openings for detention officers who if desire can attend mandate school to become certified making them eligible for Peace Officers Annuity and Benefit, (additional retirement) and an increase in salary.