Deputies are working an average of 317 hours of overtime this year, some with 500+ hours, costing the County $700,000 over budget
The problem is simple, the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office needs more officers. The answer is not so simple.
Currently the Sheriff’s Road Patrol Unit has 40 slots and only 24 officers filling those slots. Officers are asked to sign up for overtime, but if not enough do sign up, it becomes mandatory. “It is not good for officers who have finished a shift to be stuck working four, or more hours. It is not good for the officer, his/her family, it is not healthy and it is not good for the community,” admitted Wayne County Sheriff Barry Virts.
There is some light at the end of the tunnel for the department. Nine officers are currently undergoing field training and should be ready to work independently join the force on or about by November 1st. Thirteen recruits will start the police academy beginning in February of 2019.
There is a downside to the new numbers however. Retention is and has been a problem within the department. The bottom line is that Wayne County simply does not pay officers matching pay with nearby counties, or even some village municipalities within the County.
Monroe County and the City of Rochester siphons off a number of officers offering higher salaries and benefit packages every year. The same occurs with the Village of Newark and Macedon Police Departments.
Sheriff Virts pointed to just one aspect an officer looks at when considering a move away from his department. While the County offers a good health policy for singles and family policies while they are employed by the County, once an officer retires, the health benefit ends entirely. Other departments offer 100% coverage after retirement.
“I know this looks bad,” said the Sheriff of the overtime costs for this year. Sheriff Virts pointed out that he has returned a million dollars per year for 2015-2016-2017 from his budget that went back into the general fund. Also when positions are vacant, overtime is necessary to get the work done.
Sheriff Virts said the County must come to the realization that they will have to match the pay and benefits of surrounding counties to keep trained and qualified officers.
Currently, the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office provides 7 officers for the SRO (School Resource Officer) program. Two officers are assigned at Wayne Central and North Rose – Wolcott, one at Sodus Central, one at Williamson WFL BOCES Campus and one in Clyde-Savannah. They are paid for through the districts and are used by the Sheriff’s Office in July and August for patrol with the exception of the North Rose – Wolcott and Williamson WFL BOCES Campus which are assigned to those schools all year. The Red Creek School District will begin their SRO Program on January 1, 2019 st, again paid for through the district.
Sheriff Virts also spoke out at the recent County Public Safety Committee meeting against relaxing the residency requirements. He feels deputies, or other county employees will have less tendency to leave for out of county jobs if they are part of the community they work in. “We need to stick to the policy, if not, we will become nothing but a training ground to Monroe County, or other departments.”