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Turnover climbs to five‑year high in FY25; police vacancies spike as recruitment challenges persist
Summary
HR Director Clayton Roberts told council FY25 turnover reached 16.8% with 180 separations; police experienced the sharpest rise. Staff cited retirements, pay competition from neighboring agencies, and difficulty filling CDL and trade roles; staff uses sign-on bonuses and internal training programs but warned base pay remains a barrier.
Human Resources Director Clayton Roberts reported that the city experienced elevated turnover in FY25, with a 16.8% rate and 180 total separations — the highest count in five years. Roberts said voluntary separations accounted for roughly two-thirds of departures, retirements rose to about 21% of separations, and involuntary separations (terminations) also increased.
Roberts provided department-level detail: parks saw improved retention, fire remained relatively stable at 11.7% turnover, and police turnover rose to 16.5% — the department’s highest rate in five years. Police departures included officers who left for other local, state, or federal agencies that paid more, Roberts said.
On vacancies, the citywide snapshot taken Oct. 20 showed a 10% vacancy rate (119 vacancies of 1,191 positions). Public Works had the highest department vacancy at about 20% (36 of 180 positions) and Police reported 57 sworn vacancies, of which 17 were in the academy or awaiting certification and roughly 40 were counted as true vacancies.
Staff described recruitment and retention strategies in place: an internal CDL training program for public works, career-ladder programs, tuition reimbursement, sign-on bonuses (including a $25,000 incentive for certified police officers), and incremental pay bumps for newly sworn officers. Roberts and council members discussed statutory limits: unlike some states, North Carolina does not permit training-repayment clawbacks that require a new hire to remain for a set period after employer-funded training.
Looking forward, staff said improvements in base pay are critical to stabilize staffing and that the living-wage discussion currently before council is intended to address structural competitiveness. Cost modeling and implementation options will be presented to council during January budget work sessions.
