In the Army Times latest Best for Vets: Law Enforcement survey, over 70 percent of responding agencies stated they offer retirement credit for military service. In their last survey of private-sector employers, less than 1 percent were able to make the same claim.
Gerald Casey, Chief of the Veterans Affairs Departments Healthcare System Police in the Los Angeles area, said retirement is a big benefit that attract many veterans to his force.
Often a service member will spend a large part of their life in the military but decide to leave before they reach the 20-year mark needed for retirement benefits. Joining law enforcement may allow them to keep the partial retirement credits they have already earned.
For example, Casey said someone who served in the military for eight years could get credit for that time and become retirement eligible much more quickly in his department. Dont throw away those eight years, he said. A vet can become retirement eligible with the department and be young enough, still, if you want a second retirement, to go work at a municipal (law enforcement) agency.
At the Hillsborough County Sheriffs Office in the Tampa Bay area, Major Alan Hill said that because of attrition from retirements and a recent boost in funding from local government, he will be hiring 200 law enforcement deputies and another 130 detention deputies.
Hill said veterans are often natural fits for these types of positions. A lot of them know how to operate under stress. All of them know how to take orders, he said. We want to get the best of the best, and bring them in here, and give them a home, and allow them to continue to serve.
The Army Times invited large and small law enforcement agencies from around the U.S. to partake in their laborious, nearly 100-question survey. Overall, the results showed a concentrated effort to recruit vets by responding agencies. Half stated they work with military transition assistance programs and develop relationships with local National Guard units.
While most have some type of veterans hiring preference, less than half will accept military experience over technical certification. Also only one-fifth have a veterans employee group.
More importantly, out of the agencies surveyed, more than 75 percent stated they were trying to hire immediately. About 13 percent said they hoped to hire within the next year. Around 1 percent said they did not know when they would have open positions.
Lt. JT Turner of the Tucson Police Department said that the maturity, the levels of responsibility and the experience that vets have can make them valuable assets.
Trying to be a resource to returning veterans, the department offers a program that provides time in the police academy to remain informed on new policies, assistance transitioning from military to civilian life, and peer counselors supervised by a full-time department psychologist.
Theyre playing an important role in supporting our country, Turner said. I think that we have an obligation to provide the level of support that they deserve.
Caseys agency was among the top finishers in the Army Times second annual Best for Vets: Law Enforcement survey. Other top finishers included the City of Austin Police Department and the Webb County Sheriffs Office, both in Texas; the Denver Police Department in Colorado; the Hillsborough County and Orange County Sheriffs Offices in Florida; and the Tucson Police Department in Arizona.
