Police officers in New York are resigning from the NYPD iin record numbers, creating a looming ‘staffing’ shortage, according to new data.
239 officers left the New York City Police Department within the first two months of 2023, a massive jump from the 176 who left the force in 2022 and the 110 who quit in 2021.
According to an analysis from The New York Post, the numbers of police resigning from the NYPD represent a 36% spike from last year and a massive 117% jump from the 110 who left in 2021.
The numbers show the resignations in the first two months of 2023 are higher than when 250 police officers quit in 2007 over contentious contract disputes.
Police Benevolent Association President Patrick Lynch responded to the figures, warning, “The NYPD staffing emergency is approaching the point of no return.”
“We are losing cops to better pay and benefits in other policing jobs almost every day,” Lynch added.
But an NYPD pension isn’t needed to retain officers.
One veteran NYPD officer told The Post, “The NYPD needs to be rebuilt from the ground up — it’s unfixable in its current state.”
The mounting police resignations, at its current pace, will reach 1,400 officers by the end of 2023, as many officers opt to work for New York’s metro system or flee the city altogether for states like Florida.
In 2021, Florida Gov Ron DeSantis gave $5,000 bonuses to officers relocating to the sunshine state, a sharp contrast to the anti-cop sentiment of blue cities like New York.
“If you’re not being treated well, we’ll treat you better here,” DeSantis said at the time. “You can fill important needs for us, and we’ll compensate you as a result.”
Officers blame poor pay, ‘woke’ politics and dire working conditions as reasons for leaving the force.
One Cop cited an “inhumane amount of overtime” and over-the-top “penalization for minor uniform and administrative infractions” as another reason why cops are quitting.
Last year, Lynch blasted city plans to have NYPD officers work overtime to combat subway crime, adding the reliance on overtime was a huge warning sign,
“The question you have to ask is, where are those police officers coming from that are now surging into the subway?” he said at the time, according to Ab7ny. “They’re coming from our neighborhood precincts, which are already short-staffed.”
But the main issues with staff began in the wake of violent George Floyd protests, which rocked the country and ignited anti-police sentiment, especially in blue cities.
However, police recruiter Spero Georgedakis said that aside from various problems, “The allure and luster of the NYPD is gone for now.”
Meanwhile, Lynch warned that New York “won’t have a police department left” if the city does “not increase benefits and pay.”
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