OCEAN CITY – Officials this week voted to increase starting pay for seasonal officers and public safety aides.
In a work session Tuesday, the council agreed to a favorable recommendation from the Ocean City Police Commission to increase the starting pay rates for seasonal police officers and public safety aides (PSAs) and to implement signing and retention bonuses.
City Manager Terry McGean said the changes were meant to attract more candidates to seasonal positions within the Ocean City Police Department.
“We are still behind where we were last year in recruiting,” he said. “I think it’s very important. If council chooses to approve these rates, I want to do it as quickly as possible, so it has the biggest impact on recruiting.”
As approved, the starting rate for new seasonal officers would increase from $19 an hour to $19.57 an hour, while the rate for return seasonal officers would increase to $19.96 an hour.
“If we have a PSA who comes back in his second year as a seasonal officer, we pay him at the seasonal officer rate of $19.96 an hour,” McGean explained.
He added that the department would also offer a $500 signing bonus upon graduation from the academy and a $500 retention bonus for officers who remain at the department through the Oceans Calling Festival.
“Officers who fail to graduate will not receive the signing bonus, with the exception a seasonal officer fails to graduate but elects to become a public safety aide,” he noted. “They would receive the public safety aide signing bonus.”
McGean noted the starting rate for PSAs would increase from $15.91 an hour to $17.39 an hour, while the rate for return PSAs would increase to $17.74. The department would also offer a $250 signing bonus after 80 hours worked and a $250 retention bonus for PSAs who remain through the Oceans Calling event.
“If you look at what other jurisdictions are paying, we are well above everyone else,” he said.
McGean told officials this week he was tasked by the council to work with the police department on a plan to institute pay raises and incentives with the goal of attracting seasonal candidates. He said officials looked at pay rates in neighboring jurisdictions and developed new pay rates.
“We looked at what all other municipalities and local jurisdictions are paying as close as we can to what’s an equivalent position,” he said. “We’re a little bit unique in that our seasonal police officers have firearms and in a lot of other jurisdictions they do not.”
The results of those discussions were presented on Monday to the police commission, which voted to forward the proposed changes to the Mayor and Council with a favorable recommendation.
Council Secretary Tony DeLuca, however, shared his concerns regarding seasonal officer pay. He noted the new rate represented a 2.9% increase.
“I just think the seasonal officer increase of 2.9% doesn’t seem sufficient,” he said.
McGean agreed but noted that the proposed bonuses would help.
“The idea of the signing bonus essentially does that,” he said. “So a $500 signing bonus is equivalent to about a $1 an hour, and the $500 retention bonus is equivalent to another $1 an hour on top of that.”
After further discussion, the council voted unanimously to increase pay rates for seasonal officers and PSAs and to implement signing and retention bonuses.
