Once again, police executives across the United States are facing staffing issues. It’s not only just the recruiting for the vacancies but staff retention is now a major issue. Daily, there are many law enforcement veterans who are just walking away from the job. One of the things that we must capture is why they are walking away. It is easy to surmise that the recent anti-police climate is a major causation. Or are we just assuming with that response? Managers must inquire as to why their incumbent staff members are making the decision to depart. The quest to find the root cause of employee dissatisfaction is age old, but stop and think, do you really want to know? More so, once you find out, what are you going to do with it? Can a chief address what caused them to leave?
Exit interviews
One recommended practice within the realm of human resources is to conduct the exit interview. An exit interview is a process which has specific purposes and desired outcomes. First, it is to determine or capture why an employee decided to leave. Now oftentimes, the reason of this again is assumed. Some may be clear cut, such as retirement. The employee has fulfilled their vesting for retirement or met the mandatory retirement requirements. Still, that much life experience and institutional knowledge should be quizzed for their insights.
Or did the employee just get fed up and walked away? Usually, a post-discipline response or internal politics such as being passed over for promotion or special assignment can be a cause. But then again, we keep assuming. What should an exit interview be composed of? I think one of the first parts is that these need to be conducted by the executive, if feasible. If you can do the interview, great. If not, assign a trusted staff member to do so. The objective is for the former employee to be comfortable enough be open and candid. You need their insights and why they’re leaving, and maybe more to come if not corrected. Now, granted, there were times that I have done these, and sometimes they were extremely uncomfortable.
Sometimes you really need to have your big boy pants on and expect the barrage coming across the desk from a jaded employee. But then again too, you asked, and you wanted to know. So, therefore listen. I repeat: listen. Oftentimes the larger agencies will have an exit interview with a human resources staffer. I know that some chiefs/sheriffs do not always get along with human resources. I have heard them referred to as “inhuman resources.” Sometimes, the neutral party may be able to extract points that a uniformed staffer might not get. Face it, they have a job to do and often are more in tune with employment and labor law than you. I recommend having a strong relationship with HR. For me, they were more akin to a guard rail to keep me on the main road and not off into woods of a violation or lawsuit.
Exit questions
These need not be complex questions. Usually, I said it should be three questions with nine answers that I always liked to ask. The three main questions: what do we know, what do we think we know and what should we know? And then from each of these three I would like three answers or talking points.
What do we think we know. Again, if it’s a jaded employee, you ask what do they think is wrong here, you may be on the receiving end of—you, you again, and more especially you. But ask them to be honest and insightful, give me three reasons why this has turned into a bad place for them. Recall, you volunteered to work here, we did not draft you.
Next question. what do I think we know? Could they tell me three things that this department is doing well going into the future? There may be things internally that they actually enjoyed or felt pride in. That would be best to capture their insight to share, maintain or fine tune for the future.
The last question: What do I really need to know? This is going to be the uncomfortable question. If I had to ask, what are the three things that we really need to know. What can be improved to make this department a better place to work? Now again, you may have what I refer to as ‘a patrolman’s viewpoint,’ not understanding some of the rules, laws, or budgetary restraints that a manager understands. Give them a chance to explain, you may be able to explain to them but do not argue. We still want this to be a positive event.
If you get honest answers, this would be helpful to improve your department. Now there again, there will be some employees who, as their last act of defiance, will resist this process. They will just slide their resignation under your door and leave. I have had to send staff to retrieve their equipment and pick the lock on their locker to get this stuff. Oh yes, there are a few who feel this their best way they can snub the system or the department, or even the chief. Will one of these agree to an exit interview? Probably not. And again, if they did respond, what are the three problems? They would probably say the chief, the chief, the chief. Nothing will be gained there. But I do recommend talking to their supervisors or co-workers to see if they have observed any disdain or provided any inkling as to why they would consider leaving. Do they want to be forced into a commitment of saying what was wrong? Maybe not, and they can buy their silence and not share any information. Maybe they want to leave the door open, or maybe they want to go across another bridge in a positive manner without saying anything.
Due diligence
Still, anytime an employee departs, the staff and/or human resources needs to clear them from the job. There are some departments that require exit interviews where they inform the employee of re-employment rights. This is critical in some states for the maintaining of your police certification.
This is critical, especially if they do wish to return or if they changed their mind and apply to another agency. They need to fully brief the employee on what their rights and privileges are once they depart, to include employee benefits such a COBRA health insurance and any other benefits that may carry over (retirement funds, credit unions) post exodus of the agency.
Whereas, the employee may not wish to share the information, we still need to treat our employees fairly. Ask if this employee is coming from a bad incident(s); stop and ask will this be something of a PTSD issue which could require follow-up psychological services?
Granted, if they’re retirees or they are vesting, they will still be under departmental umbrella. The whole goal of an exit interview is to find out how we can make our departments more viable and sustainable? For the employees, it matters not how many cars do you have or how shiny your shield is. It is that they are treated as a valued asset.
Maintaining a healthy environment for your staff on the job and into retirement is important. Respect and ensure that the departure of every employee is positive. We still need to grade ourselves on how we treat all of our employees.
William L. Harvey | Chief
William L. "Bill" Harvey is a U.S. Army Military Police Corps veteran. He has a BA in criminology from St. Leo University and is a graduate of the Southern Police Institute of the University of Louisville (103rd AOC). Harvey served for over 23 years with the Savannah (GA) Police Department in field operations, investigations and completed his career as the director of training. Served as the chief of police of the Lebanon City Police Dept (PA) for over seven years and then ten years as Chief of Police for the Ephrata Police Dept (PA). In retirement he continues to publish for professional periodicals and train.
