HARTFORD, Conn. — The president of the Hartford Police Union is sounding the alarm, sending out a statement saying the department is in the midst of "collapsing" due to recruitment and retention issues.
In the letter, sent to city officials, Police Union President James Rutkauski said, "Since January 2020, more than 125 officers have left the police department, and in the past twelve weeks alone, the department has lost one officer per week."
Rutkauski went on to say he expects that number to increase over the next few years. He said, "A significant number of officers are scheduled to retire, with a projection of over 140 officers leaving the force. This scenario paints a bleak picture for the city."
This shortage of officers has lead to many people having to work long hours of involuntary overtime. Rutkauski said many have consistently had to work three consecutive 16-hour shifts.
"We have people retiring, we have people retiring early, we have people going to other agencies. And then we have people just leaving the police force saying, 'I'm not doing this, this is absolutely insane,'" Rutkauski said in an interview with FOX61.
The union said the retention rate is below 30%. The letter mentions that Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin and Chief of Police Jason Thody "have remained idle and shown no intention to tackle the retention problem."
However, Mayor Bronin said they've been working on recruiting new officers, hiring nearly 50 people within the last year and a half. He also spoke about a major pay raise the officers just got in a new union contract not too long ago.
"The attrition over the past 12 months is actually the lowest we've seen since 2016," Bronin said. "There's a reason that we put forward the biggest pay increase for our police in decades because they deserve it and we want to make sure that we can retain and recruit cops."
Bronin said they are seeing a staffing shortage, just like most other police departments across the nation and Connecticut. However, he said Hartford has more officers than any other city in the state, even now.
"We are open to any and all conversations about how we can work together to do what's in the best interest of our department and our community," Bronin said.
The union also cites the high crime rates, calling Hartford "one of America's deadliest cities," and demands better pay and benefits for the officers. Some service calls have waited for a response for as long as eight hours. Rutkauski said the community "deserves better" than that.
Rutkauski said he really started digging into the issue after a mass exodus of officers in 2020. Most people, he said, cited quality of life issues. Many others chose to go to other departments with more competitive pay rates, and less crime.
"I need something to sell to an officer to stay here," Rutkauski said. "There are three jewels that I look for in negotiations. Pay, medical, and pension. You have to give me one of the three."
In a statement to FOX61, Police Chief Jason Thody said his department has been facing staffing challenges for many years and that he and the city have worked to address the issues in a "uniquely aggressive way."
"We have worked tirelessly to support our officers and ease the burden during this challenging time," his statement said. "We have evidence these efforts are working. This year we have recorded the lowest number of officers that have left the department since 2016, less than half that of last year."
Thody went on to say that the department has implemented several policy changes to ease the burden on junior officers and reward those from across the entire department. He said this has made the processes more "fair and equitable, versus the traditional way where our junior patrol officers were forced to work several extra shifts weekly."
"These efforts have been met with grievances by Hartford Police Union leadership, most of which have more seniority and are unwilling to share the burden," Thody said. "The few recommendations the Union President has made come with high costs to public safety and community relations while providing much less significant relief on staffing, not to mention has been proven unpopular with many of the officers."
He continued: "This is a complex issue with no easy fix, but we are working diligently and trying new things. During times like this, it is important to put minor differences aside and work together to be most effective for our officers and our community. The work our police officers have done under the most challenging circumstances I have witnessed in law enforcement is nothing short of remarkable. They deserve results and not rhetoric. As always, I am eager and willing to work with our Union to advance meaningful change."
FOX61 has reached out to city officials for comment.
Julia LeBlanc is a reporter at FOX61 News. She can be reached at jleblanc@fox61.com Follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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