MONROE COUNTY, Ga. — Many law enforcement agencies are short on officers, and one of the reasons is because of pay. The Monroe County Sheriff's Office has a possible solution.
Sheriff Brad Freeman says his department is good at proactive law enforcement, but he says it can be hard when they're short-staffed.
"If you're already short, on top of people calling in sick, training or vacation, you are basically taxing your current personnel of working mandatory overtime," Sheriff Freeman said.
Freeman says getting paid overtime isn't always worth the long hours.
"Your people get tired. They get burnout and mistakes can start being made," Freeman said.
He says they are about 16 deputies and dispatchers short. The department came up with a proposal for county commissioners to get pay raises for current staff and incoming employees.
This includes a higher starting pay for deputies.
"Before it was $46,000 a year, now it's become a little over $50,000," Freeman said.
The pay raise start in August. The money comes from unused salaries from open positions. Other personnel are also getting raises.
The sheriff says the raise will be between $4,500 and $6,000, depending on the position and experience.
"I'm just very thankful. I have a growing family and another child on the way. For me, it'll be a big help," Corporal Dalton Mosely said.
Freeman hopes the pay raises will help hire and keep staff. Next year, Freeman says the money for the pay raises will come from the property tax and freezing four deputy positions.