The Associated Press
NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) - Five veteran police officers have left the city’s force in the past week to take higher-paying jobs with the Charleston County Sheriff’s Office.
Chief Jon Zumalt, who took over the 270-person department in December, says he needs an additional $1.3 million a year to bring the department’s pay scale more in line with surrounding jurisdictions.
It will be tough to replace the five officers, who has a combined 32 years law enforcement experience, Zumalt said.
“When you lose experience it takes a long time to recover. You can’t just walk in off of the street and have it,” he said.
The starting salary of a North Charleston police officer fresh out of high school is $23,000 and can range to $26,500 for an experienced officer. That compares to the Charleston Police Department, where the range is $27,979 to $48,780. The Charleston County Sheriff’s Office pays starting officers $28,184 to $42,577.
Zumalt said the department has lost 25 officers so far this year for a variety of reasons. When an officer leaves, it can take up to 23 weeks and about $15,000 to hire, train and equip a new officer, he said.
“We are having a difficult time attracting qualified applicants. They go to the other places first, and if they don’t get hired, then they come to us,” said Zumalt. “I’m trying to convince my folks to stay put and things will improve in the future.”
Mayor Keith Summey attributed the sudden departure of the officers to the county dropping its college-degree requirement during a recent two-month window.
But while the pay is less, North Charleston offers benefits from health care to a program that pays all medical bills for family members of any officer killed in the line of duty, Summey added.
“People always think the grass is greener on the other side of the fence. What most people ultimately find out is that no matter whose grass it is, every winter it turns brown,” Summey said. “There is no such thing as a perfect employer.”