WILLIAMSBURG — The James City County (JCC) Board of Supervisors voted unanimously in favor to approve salary increases and incentives for employees in its public safety departments on Sept. 13, including law enforcement officers, fire department personnel, and paramedics.
The new salary increase for the county’s police department applies to both current and newly recruited officers.
JCC published in a county news release that the starting pay for new police recruits has increased from $47,175 to $50,700.
According to the JCC announcement, current officers will receive a 5% salary increase, with an adjustment in the Career Ladder Advancement Program that issues a 2.5% salary increase for all officers below the rank of Police Officer 4 (for context, current officers are given a 5% raise for each advancement and 2.5% of the Police Officer 4 advancement is being issued early), and a $2,000 referral bonus for any recruited officers.
The increase in both compensation and incentives to public safety personnel is to help address the recruitment and retention challenges the county has been facing within its departments.
James City County’s Fire Department has increased its salary incentives for ALS to all eligible fire department personnel from $3,000 to $6,000 for EMT-Intermediate and from $6,000 to $12,000 for paramedics.
James City County Police Department (JCCPD) is currently accepting applications for both certified officers and police recruits, and a couple of benefits were approved to help attract new recruits and certified officers, including:
- A $5,000 sign-on bonus for new recruits
- A $1,500 salary increase for an associate degree (or 60 earned credit hours from an accredited college/university)
- $3,000 for a bachelor’s degree for both recruits and current officers
- An extra $3,251/year for midnight shift officers
The updated salary ranges for police officer positions include:
- Police Officer I (Recruit or Certified) — ($50,700 or higher depending on qualifications)
- Police Officer II — ($52,728 or higher depending on qualifications; range max $76,411)
- Senior Police Officer (PO3) — ($54,837 – $82,044)
- Master Police Officer (PO4) — ($57,030 – $88,100)
JCCPD is accepting applications until Sept. 25. For more detailed job descriptions as well as additional benefit information, visit James City County’s police webpage.
More information on employment with the fire department can be found its official webpage.
