Joplin City Council unanimously agree to double the Police Recruitment Incentive Program to $10,000
JOPLIN, Mo. — Monday evening Joplin Police Chief Sloan Rowland went before the Joplin City Council seeking approval to double their Recruitment Incentive Program to $10,000 for qualified lateral hires.
Chief Rowland stated a reminder it was last May the incentive program of $5,000 was approved by the council. They had four new qualified officers join. However they were hoping for more.
There was little discussion except Councilman Copple noting it is a comparable incentive package with other departments around the region, Chief Rowland concurred.
It passed with all nine council members in favor and zero opposed.
Additionally the referral program doubled to $2,000 for those employees referring new hires who join the force.
“The Joplin Police Department announces a new and improved Lateral Incentive Program, with an incentive increase from $5,000 to $10,000. Currently licensed peace officers or Law Enforcement Academy students can earn $10,000 after 1) passing all required hiring steps, 2) successfully passing all training requirements.” — JPD
The Recruitment Incentive Program is designed to attract police applicants and it is outlined below.
An Officer must stay at least two years with the department, agreeing that, “As a condition of receiving the recruitment incentive payment, I will commit to two (2) years of full- time employment for the City of Joplin as a Police Officer. If I do not fulfill my commitment of two (2) years of full-time employment, I will be required to forfeit any accrued leave balances to offset any financial obligations based upon a pro-rated amount of the remaining commitment.”
For more information one can contact the Joplin Police Dept, 417-623-3131 or apply on the website.
For those not current or former officers there are other incentives to pay for police academy education to become an officer with the department. Find those details on the website or by calling as well.
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Shannon Becker was born and raised in Joplin and began in radio before graduating from Joplin Senior High in 1990. He holds a bachelor’s degree in mass communications from Missouri Southern State University (1994). Before launching Joplin News First in 2017, he worked in television and radio, overlapping a career in the music industry. He worked with major music artists for 20 years, garnering gold and platinum records to his credit. He comes to KOAM 7 News Now-CBS/FOX (Morgan-Murphy Media) with more than 30 years in media and entertainment. He previously worked for KOAM. He has five children and two grandchildren.
