City Of Detroit Announces $2,000 Retention Bonuses For DPD Officers, $1,000 For Police Assistants

DETROIT (CBS Detroit) -- In an effort to keep Detroit police officers from leaving to neighboring agencies, city officials announced $2,000 bonuses for full-time officers and $1,000 bonuses for police assistants.

In a press conference on Tuesday, Mayor Mike Duggan said the bonuses come after unanimous approval from the city council. The $2,000 bonuses will go to full-time officers "who are on the job effective Feb. 21," Duggan said.

"With today's vote by City Council, it's a clear statement to the officers in this city that the people of Detroit love you and we're behind you," he said.

Detroit Police Chief James White said he hopes the incentive will "curb the alarming number of officers that are leaving."

"Our officers put in tremendous hours and are exposed to a number of challenges... As a result, they become the most experienced in the shortest amount of time, which makes them the officers that a lot of our surrounding agencies want to recruit," White said. "This incentive retention bonus is what we're looking for to boost the officers' morale and certainly let them know that we care about them."

The funds will come from the department's general and overtime budget as well as American Rescue Plan Act funds. Officials say the bonuses, totaling nearly $5 million, will be paid out to more than 2,000 sworn members.

According to the DPD, 19 officers left the department for other police agencies so far this year. In 2021, more than 100 officers left the department.

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