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Officer Retention Patterns: An Affirmative Action Concern for Police Agencies?

NCJ Number
163019
Journal
American Journal of Police Volume: 14 Issue: 3/4 Dated: (1995) Pages: 197-210
Author(s)
W G Doerner
Date Published
1995
Length
14 pages
Annotation
This study examined turnover among sworn personnel in the Tallahassee Police Department (Florida) to determine the characteristics of "stayers" and "quitters" so as to identify turnover patterns by race and gender; possible ramifications of differential turnover for the organization are discussed.
Abstract
The original data were compiled from agency personnel files that dated from January 1981, when the Field Training Officer (FTO) Program was implemented, through to March 1986. A total of 134 recruits satisfied State certification requirements and entered the FTO program during this period. Officers who remained in continuous service from their initial appointment date until June 30, 1994, were classified as "stayers." Officers who severed full-time employment ties with the agency were placed in the "quitter" category. An intermediate group, dubbed "switchers," contained officers who interrupted their agency careers to take jobs elsewhere, but eventually returned to the department. A preliminary examination of turnover rates for this cohort revealed differential employee retention patterns. In terms of race, 48 percent of the white officers and 51 percent of the black officers hired during the 1981-86 period were no longer on the active duty roster. Although 39 percent of the male officers had left the agency by July 1994, the departure rate was 67 percent for female officers. Thus, there were pronounced attrition rates for women, especially black females. This finding implies that corrective hiring plans may not be achieving their intended affirmative action purposes over the long term. 3 tables and 52 references

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