The Cleveland Division of Police will host an expedited hiring event Friday, Sept. 13 through Sunday, Sept 15 that will accelerate the application process.
“It’s an event designed to where candidates can come and apply,” said Public Information Officer Sergeant Wilfredo Diaz. “They can take the civil service test, take their physical agility test and do the primary background check, and then by the end of the day that they’re here, would receive a preliminary conditional letter of offer.”
The event is designed to move applicants more rapidly through a hiring process that typically takes weeks, said Diaz.
“If they continue to pass a more extensive background check, a psychological exam and a physical, they can actually get an offer to start in the police academy,” Diaz said, though this part of the process will take place after the expedited hiring event. “We can host the written exam, the physical exam, and the background check all within one day to hopefully save multiple weeks of waiting time.”
The department is hosting the event to fill vacant positions the department is trying to fill as soon as possible, according to Diaz.
“It’s almost a two-part approach, filling the roles as soon as possible while also not losing candidates in the process,” Diaz said.
In 2023, the Cleveland Division of Police witnessed 165 departures, but only 21 new hires. Diaz said that the police department has over two hundred openings that are waiting to be filled.
“The shortages and recruitment difficulties are really a nationwide problem,” Diaz said. “It’s not specific to the division of police here in Cleveland. However, we realize that times have changed. Part of that process is to find ways how we can... minimize the waiting process to fill these roles.”
Small and medium-sized departments nationwide have more officers than they did in January 2020, but larger departments are still 5% below 2020 staffing levels, according to reporting by the Associated Press. And while the rate of resignations has slowed by about 20% across the country, many departments, especially small ones, struggled with retirements.
Cleveland is providing incentives to attract candidates, including a $5,000 signing bonus and tuition reimbursement for officers.
“Law enforcement is a very challenging career. We respond to very stressful incidents — critical moments for people’s lives,” Diaz said. “It’s important to fill these roles, to have officers that are going to be dedicated to serving and dedicated to making a difference.”
The event will be hosted at Cleveland's City Hall, 500 Lakeside Ave. East, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Candidates should wear workout clothes to take a physical fitness assessment, and pre-registration before Friday is encouraged.