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POST Recruitment & Retention: Best Practices Update

NCJ Number
214679
Date Published
April 2006
Length
217 pages
Annotation
This report provides information and best practices for improving law enforcement recruitment and retention.
Abstract
California, as well as most other States, is facing an employment crisis as aging Baby Boomers retire in mass numbers, leaving large numbers of jobs unfilled. A recent survey of police chiefs in California revealed that recruitment and retention were consistently among the top two issues facing State law enforcement during the next 5 years. This report assists law enforcement agencies recruit and retain qualified candidates by providing information about best practices in police recruitment and retention. If followed consistently and patiently, the lessons outlined in this report will help agencies reach their recruitment and retention goals, even if it takes a number of years. Section 1 provides an introduction and a review of the relevant research literature. Information from four surveys, focus group sessions, and reports on peace officers are also presented. Among the main findings is the fact that the two strongest motivators for candidates to pursue a law enforcement career are desire to serve and the element of adventure. Section 2 focuses on 12 best practices for law enforcement recruitment and retention. Best practices in the area of recruitment include the importance of developing a recruitment plan, conducting research on recruitment needs, personalizing the recruitment process, and improving the selection practice, among others. Best practices in the area of retention include the importance of developing employee-friendly policies and work culture, engaging employees, improving communication, and addressing cost of housing issues. Following the description of each best practice is a summary of the key points. The chapter on best practices for diversity recruitment, for example, outlines research related to increasing diversity in law enforcement agencies and describes diversity recruitment initiatives undertaken in law enforcement agencies across the country to illustrate best practices in action. Footnotes, tables, resources, appendixes