Oak Ridge officials outline pay bands, training and recruitment steps for police

City staff presented a new pay-and-career framework for the police department designed to reduce pay compression and link pay steps with training and certifications. "Our new police officer 1 starting pay is gonna be $48,464," Eric said while introducing the police slide set, noting the change reflects regional market averages and a retuning of job titles.

Police Chief Smith described the training expectations that tie into the pay bands: academy attendance, an internal field-training program and Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) training when available. The chief said officers should complete core competencies such as basic crash investigation and crime-scene investigation and that each officer should carry out two hours of community engagement annually. "We want each one of them to have at least 2 hours of community engagement during the year," Chief Smith said, adding that participation can include speaking to groups or local events.