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Oak Ridge proposes tiered pay plans and professional development tracks for police and fire
Summary
City staff outlined multi-year pay structures and a professional development ladder for police and firefighters, with specific starting pay figures and certification incentives; implementation includes training, career progression and a $2.5 million state-funded body-camera grant.
Oak Ridge staff presented detailed pay-plan changes and a professional development framework for the police and fire departments designed to improve recruitment, retention and training consistency.
For the police department, staff proposed renaming and reorganizing entry-level titles into a tiered system: Police Officer 1 (trainee) and Police Officer 2 (certified officer). The draft sets a new starting pay for Police Officer 1 at $48,464 and a Police Officer Investigator (certified, field-training completed) at $51,001. The plan also creates a third captain position to split supervisory duties across more focused areas of oversight.
The police professional development plan links training achievements to pay advancement and defines core competencies (CIT — crisis intervention training; crash investigation; basic crime investigation). Staff said training will be offered regionally and locally when available and that the department will pursue instructor development to host some courses in Oak Ridge.
For the fire department, staff proposed new baseline and incentive steps tied to certification. Entry-level firefighter trainee starting pay was listed at $42,020.16; firefighter 2, EMT engineer starting pay at $49,008.96; and firefighter 2 paramedic engineer starting at $53,930.24. Captain (paramedic) pay and battalion chief pay were listed at $69,422.08 and $83,254.08 respectively.
The fire plan also adds an incentive step equal to a 2% additional pay step for completion of HAZMAT certification. Staff said that HAZMAT step will be implemented on the first pay period of the fiscal year and applied retroactively for eligible employees.
Staff noted a $2.5 million state-funded body-camera grant included in the budget for phased implementation, which staff said will require time and management resources to deploy. Several council members and staff asked about travel and training availability; police and fire leaders said training will be a mix of local offerings and regional academies based on availability.
Ending: The compensation committee approved the recommendations and staff said the pay changes will be reviewed further by Budget and Finance before a first reading of the budget package.
