Southern cities hope to recruit officers from pool of recently axed N.J. police
Published: Friday, December 10, 2010, 6:30 AM Updated: Friday, December 10, 2010, 12:12 PM
Camden Police Department officers patrol along Broadway in Camden on December 2. Police departments from a number of southern U.S. cities are making a play to scoop up officers from N.J. departments experiencing layoffs. Police officers facing layoffs in Newark, Camden and other New Jersey municipalities may be taking their pink slips and heading south.
Several southern cities — including Nashville, Atlanta and Norfolk, Va. — are recruiting in the Garden State in an attempt to lure New Jersey’s finest to their police departments.
"These people are an asset," said Detective Leonard Keeler of the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department, which wants to hire at least 100 officers within the next year.
Keeler spent two days this week recruiting in New Jersey, focusing on Camden, where the police department is facing severe cuts due to the city’s budget troubles. He returned to Tennessee with a list of 50 officers interested in making the 750-mile move south.
Tempting New Jersey police officers with a lower-paying position in Nashville’s 1,350-member department wasn’t difficult, Keeler said.
"There’s no income tax," Keeler said. "Toll roads — we don’t have them here."
Across New Jersey, police departments are facing budget and staff cuts as cities try to stay out of the red. Newark recently laid off 167 officers after failed negotiations between the police union and the mayor. In Camden, nearly half the city’s 373 officers could lose their jobs if the city does not reach an agreement with its unions. Jersey City, Atlantic City and other cities have either lost or are planning to lay off dozens of officers.
Meanwhile, many police departments in the South are expanding or looking for experienced officers to supplement their ranks. Several out-of-state law enforcement agencies reached out to New Jersey cities after seeing media coverage about police cuts.
"We’ve made almost worldwide news," said Officer John Williamson, president of Camden’s Fraternal Order of Police chapter.
In addition to Nashville, Camden police were contacted by recruiters from Atlanta, Baltimore and Norfolk, Va., Williamson said. In Newark, multiple in-state and out-of-state police departments inquired about the city’s pink-slipped officers.
Newark officers were notified of job openings through e-mails and announcements on a Facebook page, said Officer Derrick Hatcher, president of the city’s police union. One Newark officer has already been hired by neighboring Bloomfield.
Norfolk’s police department also posted a recruitment notice on the New Jersey State PBA website touting the benefits of working in Virginia’s harborside city.
"Salaries are lower than in New Jersey, but the cost of living here is lower as well," Norfolk police Sgt. Fred M. Jackson said in the post. "We are less than 15 minutes from the beach, and you do not have to live in the city of Norfolk in order to be a police officer here."
New Jersey officers relocating out of state may have to take a steep pay cut. In Camden, base salaries for officers start at about $31,000 and can go up to $73,000 after 10 years, the police union said.
Recruiters from the Nashville force are offering applicants rookie positions starting at $40,000 to $42,000 to fill vacancies from officers retiring or leaving, department officials said. The maximum salary after 10 years in Nashville is $57,000, not including incentives.
Nashville police will not pay relocation costs for New Jersey officers moving south. But relocating officers would save on other costs. Unlike their New Jersey counterparts, Nashville police don’t contribute to their pension, which is funded by the city.
Keeler, the recruiter from the Nashville Police Department, also touted the benefits of Tennessee’s lower property taxes. Keeler said he pays about $1,700 in property taxes on his house in Tennessee while his cousin in New Jersey’s Hunterdon County pays about $9,000 annually for a house of approximately the same value.
If New Jersey officers are not interested in the Nashville jobs, Keeler said he has other out-of-state departments on his recruiting tour. Next stop: Ohio, where departments are facing similar budget cuts.
"We’re looking for the experience. We’re looking for the best candidates," Keeler said.
Staff writer Kelly Heyboer contributed to this report.
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