Unlike Asheville, Henderson County law enforcement not experiencing staffing issues - BlueRidgeNow.com
Times-News Correspondent
Despite challenges police departments are facing nationwide to recruit new officers, Hendersonville Police Department and the Henderson County Sheriff's Office are not experiencing significant staffing issues.
The Hendersonville Police Department currently has 44 of 46 officer positions filled and is down only one of six positions in telecommunication. The Henderson County Sheriff's Office has four vacancies in the E-911 center but has three people currently in the background check phase of the hiring process. All other positions are filled.
“We're in a much better situation than certainly Asheville is, and, quite frankly, better than what a lot of other police departments in the state are seeing right now,” Hendersonville Chief of Police Blair Myhand said.
Even with just a few openings, recruitment has historically been a struggle for the Hendersonville Police Department. To help with hiring both in the police and other departments, the city of Hendersonville signed a $76,680 contract with Greenville, S.C. marketing firm RingoFire in January to create recruitment and marketing material. The police recruitment and marking campaign was allotted $33,000 of the total contract, which covers ad strategy and management, graphic design, copywriting, management services, the creation of a recruitment video and digital advertising on social media and Google.
The recruitment video, which was set to be completed on Feb. 22, has been pushed back due to scheduling and weather delays, among other things. Location is central to the brand RingoFire is contracted to build for both the city of Hendersonville and the police department due to nearby major cities like Asheville, Greenville and Charlotte and the city’s location in the mountains.
“That is a big part of our brand that we want people to understand: They can live here and work here, and this is a great place to raise a family, to be outdoors, to hunt, to fish, to drive on mountain roads. All of these things exist out here that you don't find in other places,” Myhand said.
The hiring process for a new officer takes anywhere form 60 to 120 days. Myhand said he believes “most people would appreciate the fact” that the department takes the time to extensively vet those who would become officers, which leads to the lengthy process.
“I don't want to cut corners in a background process because that tends to invite opportunities to miss things that will come back and haunt all of us later. So we really work hard in making sure that we have really looked at someone's background and vetted that person before we put them in a uniform,” Myhand said.
To increase recruitment, the department has added a hiring and recruitment bonus. New officers can receive a $4,500 hiring bonus, while current employees receive a $500 bonus if someone they referred is hired.
“I feel very strongly that if you as a current employee recommend someone else, I'm immediately interested in that person, because I don't believe you're going to recommend somebody that you would not want to work with," Myhand said.
While recruitment has been a struggle for the Hendersonville Police Department, retention has not. The city recently increased pay for all city employees, pays 75% of police officers’ health insurance premiums for family coverage and outfitted officers with modern equipment and vehicles.
“All of those things are nice, but they're not enough to keep, to retain, people in your agency. So I'm really trying to develop a culture where officers enjoy coming to work here,” Myhand said.
While the department internally supports officers through training, Myhand said a large part of creating a positive culture is the support the department receives from the community and elected officials. Public Information Officer for the Hendersonville County Sheriff’s Office Johnny Duncan echoed the sentiment.
“The citizens of Henderson County are very supportive of the Henderson County Sheriff’s Office,” Duncan said. “That, coupled with the support of our county commissioners and county managers, make Henderson County a very attractive place to have a career.”
Myhand said he believes the majority of the problems the Asheville Police Department is facing are due to “feeling a lack of support from the city leadership and the public in general.”
“Until that changes, I think Asheville will continue to see difficulties in hiring and retaining officers,” Myhand said.
The staffing shortages at the police department will not have a significant impact on operations.
“Over my experiences in this career, being 100% is a rarity, really. I think you can get there and you can stay there, but most agencies almost always operate with vacancies, and given the current climate in the nation, the challenges that, you know, this profession has seen over the last two years, have been hugely impactful in our ability to retain officers and to hire new people,” Myhand said.
source: https://www.blueridgenow.com/story/news/crime/2022/04/18/unlike-asheville-henderson-county-law-enforcement-not-experiencing-staffing-issues/7316217001/
Your content is great. However, if any of the content contained herein violates any rights of yours, including those of copyright, please contact us immediately by e-mail at media[@]kissrpr.com.