Some Marietta officers say they’re underpaid and understaffed. City officials disagree
Some Marietta police officers are taking to social media to say they aren’t making as much money as other departments and they’re understaffed.
A post that’s since gone viral on social media claims that nearly two dozen officers have left for other local departments.
The City of Marietta tells Channel 2′s Michael Seiden that isn’t the case and that they don’t have a staffing problem.
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Officers who asked not to be identified so they don’t lose their jobs say they are fed up with the low pay.
One officer said a Marietta officer with five years of experience makes $51,000, but a Cobb County officer with the same experience makes $57,000 and receive 10% raises for being part of special teams.
They also claim the department is down more than 25 officers, with more than half of those resigning in the last two months.
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The city disputes those claims and say 10 officers have resigned in the last month and only 19 have left the department since January. Of those 19, they can only confirm that two joined other local departments.
They go on to say that their pay is better or on par with Cobb County because the $51,000 does not take benefits into account.
On Friday night, Mayor Steve Tumlin, City Manager Bill Bruton, Police Chief Marty Ferrell and Fire Chief Tim Milligan released a lengthy joint statement.
Over the past several days, there has been information circulating on social media concerning the state of public safety in Marietta. Much of this information is false and misleading and presents the incorrect view that Marietta is not safe. Due to the importance of public safety, the City of Marietta’s Leadership is compelled to respond.
Despite staffing challenges, Marietta remains a safe and well-protected community. Exemplifying this safety, crime has not increased over the last year, and crimes against persons and property have decreased. We are adequately staffing patrol shifts by reallocating resources within the department. The Marietta Police Department has excellent officers to match the best equipment, training, vehicles, and technology. Additionally, the City created a Public Safety Ambassador program in 2017. This program has expanded from 8 to 12 ambassadors since that time. These ambassadors serve as a force multiplier to our police department and handle nonenforcement tasks, allowing our officers to focus on policing.
School Resource Officer positions are a top priority for the police department and will remain so.
Although fully staffed as recently as 2020, it is true that the Marietta Police Department is currently down several positions (though 22 and not the purported 25). We are not alone in facing challenges recruiting and retaining officers.
Departments across the County, Metro, State, and Country are dealing with these issues and with the decline in law enforcement applicants over the last three years. In fact, police departments in the United States have an average vacancy rate of 30 percent according to the International Association of Chiefs of Police. From 2019 to 2022, national law enforcement resignations rose 47 percent, and retirements increased by 19 percent per the Police Executive Research Forum. Further demonstrating the shared nature of this challenge, only 2 of the 19 Marietta officers that have left since January 2023 went to other local police departments,
This is a concerning trend that has been recognized by City leadership. It is in response that we have implemented 3 pay increases over the last 17 months. As a result of these increases, the Marietta Police Department has averaged a 16.5 percent salary increase over that timeframe. Currently our starting take home pay for new officers is among the highest in Cobb County. As is our normal practice at this time of year, we are currently evaluating additional salary increases for all City employees and anticipate recommendations coming forward within the month for consideration by Mayor and Council. We are committed to evaluating our compensation to remain competitive.
Additionally, Marietta is also well-protected by the Marietta Fire Department. Currently, the MFD has a 2 percent vacancy rate with applicants ready to fill the 3 positions. The department has been the recipient of several lateral transfers from other departments across the State. Not only do our department and firefighters perform outstanding service, but we maintain an ISO Class 1 rating and are currently developing an exceptional Public Safety Training Center to serve both Police and Fire.
We can say with absolute assurance that Marietta values public safety and demonstrates this by committing 51 percent of our general fund budget to Police and Fire. Marietta remains a safe City with great public safety professionals working diligently for our citizens.
Mayor Steve Tumlin, City Manager Bill Bruton, Police Chief Marty Ferrell and Fire Chief Tim Milligan
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