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Chief says 20‑step scale doesn’t fit long police careers
Summary
Charles Town’s police chief told the personnel committee that a 20‑step pay scale does not match officers’ 30–35 year careers and urged separate consideration for the police in any compensation study.
At the Feb. 10 Personnel Committee meeting, the chief asked the committee to consider police pay separately because many officers serve 30 to 35 years while the city’s scale has only 20 steps.
"A 20 year scale is not going to be conducive to long term employees," the chief said, noting several officers with 18–25 years of service who are approaching the top of the scale.
Committee members agreed the police department faces unique recruiting and retention pressures and suggested the study should treat sworn positions and civil‑service rank structures differently from administrative or hourly roles.
Members also noted that the department uses sign‑on bonuses for the first year and that civil‑service rules and rank structure can limit flexibility on pay placement for officers.
