Law Enforcement Agencies are Responding to the Recruitment Crisis by Lowering Their Standards. They Should be Raising Them. Here's Why.

Law enforcement agencies across the United States are struggling with recruitment and retention, due largely to the effects of COVID-related burnout, mental health and wellness concerns, and public sentiment toward the police. As a result of understaffing, cities and counties are paying millions of dollars in overtime pay just to keep up with the call for service demands. In FY 2024, the NYPD spent $2.4 billion in overtime pay, with a large contributors being understaffing, mandatory extra shifts, and officer burnout.

Law enforcement administrators are seeing little return on investment, as they are investing in recruitment and outreach, only to see the number of qualified applicants dwindle. This is more heavily felt by agencies in rural communities or departments operating in the shadow of larger agencies with more socioeconomic advantages and strategies to woo prospective applicants away from those most affected by the current recruitment and retention crisis.

In an effort to adapt to staffing shortages, some agencies have leaned on their non-sworn personnel to handle calls for service that can be handled by CSOs or cadets/recruits. Depending on the unique needs of each jurisdiction, this can certainly be cost-effective, reduce response times, and allow sworn personnel greater latitude with calls for service that require more time and attention.

However, some agencies have responded to recruitment issues by lowering their standards, including education requirements, ignoring red flags in personal history statements, and overlooking often legitimate reasons for termination in other law enforcement agencies. For many departments, widening the goal posts is an easy solution to a critical problem, and certainly, some of the applicants who enter into law enforcement under these adapted requirements wind up being assets to both their agency and their community.

The reality is that when law enforcement agencies lower their standards, along with that comes the decline in public opinion and perception of police legitimacy, both of which are often cited as the number one reason why agencies are struggling to get applicants in the first place. The "lowering the bar" approach to recruitment only makes the recruitment crisis, along with officer mental wellness and public perception of the police, worse. Simply put, quality applicants do not want to work among unqualified officers, nor do they want to be part of an organization that lowers their standards at a time when they should be raising them.

While a great deal has changed in policing, the fact of matter is that recruitment efforts have not evolved to the degree that they need in attract dynamic applicants. Certainly the mode of delivery for recruitment messages, including social media campaigns, QR codes instead of paper pamphlets, and TikTok dances instead of television ads, has created the perception of changes in recruitment, the reality is that the majority of law enforcement agencies have not given their recruitment strategy the overhaul it needs to attract dynamic applicants.

The solution is to market the profession in a way that speaks to those who can best serve their communities. Sadly, many departments do not possess the time or the resources to accomplish this. The applicants are out there. They just need to be found.

Does your agency need a recruitment overhaul? Book a complimentary, no obligation, recruitment kick-off call to learn how to attract dynamic applicants who are here to stay.

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