Bonuses, pay increases to help Hackleburg Police retention

HACKLEBURG — The Town of Hackleburg voted to approve a measure that may drastically increase recruiting and retention for the Hackleburg Police Department after a proposal was pitched to them by HPD Chief Kenny Hallmark during their Monday, Sept. 21, meeting.
“The council approved an officer longevity and retention plan,” Hallmark said in a followup interview the next morning. “It’s something they went ahead and adopted to try to help us keep police officers.”
Hallmark explained top pay for a police patrol officer in Hackleburg was set at $22.71 an hour.
“I asked the council to consider a 10 percent pay raise, which would adjust the pay to $24.98 for basic patrol officers,” he said.
“And I asked them to consider doing longevity pay for officers who stay with us or who have been in law enforcement for a period of time. That wealth of knowledge you bring—you can’t really put a dollar value on it. I asked them for every five, 10, 15 and 20 year time frame—to adjust that pay.”