DETROIT (WXYZ) — Wayne County leaders say there are 1,000 job vacancies in county government, while the budget is able to cover 4,000 total jobs needed to function smoothly.
According to the statistics, the sheriff's department is feeling the brunt of the worker shortage. That includes the jail. The county said it's looking to hire 350 law enforcement officers.
Corey Frederick, 29, is a U.S. Navy veteran who currently works as a security guard at Detroit Quality Staffing and has hopes of transitioning to law enforcement.
“I’m taking five classes right now. I’m trying to get a degree in criminal justice with criminology," he explained.
In fact, he said he’s passed both physical and mental screening tests required for working inside of a jail.
“Anything is possible. Anything that’ll further my family and my career I'm willing to do," Frederick said.
He said the job vacancy rate in Wayne County is news to him.
"It’s sad in a way actually," he said.
Over at the juvenile detention center, the county said it needs to hire 39 juvenile detention specialists. At the court, 47 assistant prosecuting attorneys are needed.
“We are really nearing a crisis situation," Alisha Bell, Wayne County Commission chairwoman, told 7 Action News.
She said there are typically about 500 vacancies at any given time. However, over the course of the pandemic, the vacancy rate doubled.
Bell said the county is not only recruiting but also looking inward on how to retain staff.
“We know we’re competing with private sector, and that’s probably our biggest competitor right now because they pay more. But we’re looking internally on what we can do as far as salaries, benefits and retirement plans to make us more attractive for people to come over to Wayne County," she explained.
Bell said salaries and medical benefits are the two biggest drivers causing people to leave. The impact includes a backlog in criminal cases, delays in processing death certificates, birth certificates, CPL licenses, and the list goes on.
"We're working very diligently to address the backlog," she said. "It's going to take a minute, especially when we don't have the bodies there to process that work."
Here's a link to thoseA list of job openings can be found on the county's website.
