King County Sheriff offering $40K bonus for in-state lateral hires, facing nearly 100 vacancies

As law enforcement agencies across Washington struggle to fill vacancies, the King County Sheriff’s Office just upped the ante with what it’s calling the “40-40-40 plan.”

Current law enforcement officers in Washington will receive a $40,000 signing bonus, as well as 40 hours of vacation time and 40 hours of sick leave, starting Day One, when they join the King County Sheriff’s Office.

“Right now we have quite a bit of money set aside for these lateral bonuses, because it’s what the industry is really requiring,” Sheriff Patti Cole-Tindall told KIRO Newsradio. “At this point, we have others in King County that are offering a $50,000 signing bonus.”

Agencies across Washington are competing for the same pool of candidates, Cole-Tindall said. And that can cause tensions between different agencies.

“We don’t actively poach people,” Cole-Tindall said. “We present … what we have to offer and let those candidates make the decision on their own.”

Out-of-state lateral hires will receive a $25,000 bonus.

In a news release, the sheriff’s office said that officers who have experience in specialty roles, such as serving as a homicide detective or K9 handler, can apply for those positions during the final period of their probationary period. They’ll also get to choose where they’d like to work when their training is finished.

The sheriff’s office hopes its “new, robust recruiting” plan will help it fill 95 vacancies.

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