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Updated 4 hours ago
The Greensburg Police Department is set to hire two new patrolmen, which would bring the force to full strength for the first time in years.
“It's been a very long while,” Chief Chad Zucco said.
The contract between the police union and city mandates a staff of 27 officers. However, a 2011 agreement temporarily reduced that number to 26 to save money.
That agreement expired at the end of 2015, but a slew of retirements left the department struggling to fill gaps.
“It was just one of those things that we never caught up on,” Zucco said.
The department has steadily hired patrolmen the last few years to replace those who were leaving and is two officers shy of a full roster.
Four candidates are undergoing routine background checks, according to Zucco. Two of the finalists likely will be hired at a city council meeting in March, he said.
Most of the officers who retired had 20 or more years of experience, leaving the department with a leadership deficit. It's supposed to have three sergeants and three lieutenants but in May had one of each.
Sergeants must have at least one year of experience before they can take the test to be promoted to lieutenant. The department didn't have enough qualified candidates to fill the lieutenant positions, so it promoted extra sergeants in hopes of fast-tracking the promotion process, Zucco said.
Over the last eight months, the department promoted four patrolmen to sergeant, most recently Shawn Denning in January.
This year, two sergeants will take the test for promotion to lieutenant.
Police departments across Pennsylvania have had difficulty attracting and maintaining full staffs, according to Tom Gross, executive director of the Pennsylvania Chiefs of Police Association.
“We don't have numbers on that, but we do hear from chiefs all the time that they're understaffed and have unfilled openings,” he said.
It's affecting organizations on every level, from small borough departments to the Pennsylvania State Police, he said.
There are a few reasons for the shortage, Gross said.
“People are leaving maybe more frequently, just finding that it's not the job they expected or hoped for. And the other problem is, nationwide, there is a major shortage of applicants.”
Zucco said he saw the decline in applicants as he sifted through candidates to fill Greensburg's two openings.
“Years ago, I remember when I took the test, we had 150 people take it. And this time, we had about 50,” he said.
Gross said he doesn't know if the decline is temporary.
“The trend has been downward in terms of police applicants. So yeah, hopefully that will not continue, but it could lead to a serious police shortage,” he said.
In Greensburg, a full staff will make a big difference, Zucco said.
“It just makes everything smoother,” he said. “As busy as we are here, we need all the manpower we can get.”
Jacob Tierney is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at 724-836-6646 or jtierney@tribweb.com.
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