DO EMPLOYEE REFERRAL INCENTIVE PILOT PROGRAM_UPDATED 04082021.PDF

Detention Officer
Employee Referral Incentive Pilot Program
Introduction
Since the beginning of 2020, the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) has seen a sharp decline in the
number of applications submitted for the position of Detention Officer, which has directly impacted the
Office’s ability to fill current vacancies. As of March 15, 2021, the Office had 283 Detention Officer
vacancies.
Background
Application Volume & Hiring
In 2019, the applicant pool for Detention Officer was sufficient to meet the demands of the Office with
an average of 14.03 applications received per day. The number of applications received coupled with
the implementation of an online background investigation questionnaire, a Lateral Detention Officer1
hiring program and other pre-employment processing efficiencies resulted in MCSO hiring 404
Detention Officers in 2019.
Unfortunately, at the beginning of 2020, the application volume for Detention Officer declined to an
average of 8.31 applications received per day, which was a 40.76% decline from 2019. MCSO attributes
a portion of this decline to the COVID-19 pandemic and perceived heightened risk of potential applicants
concerned about contracting the disease by working in a jail environment. While MCSO was able to hire
139 Detention Officers in 2020, this was a 65% decline from the previous year.
Thus far in 2021, MCSO is receiving an average of 5.87 applications per day, which is a 29.36% decline
from 2020 and a 58.16% decline from 2019, respectively. During the first two months of 2021, MCSO
has hired just 29 Detention Officers.
Separations
In addition to current vacancies, MCSO must also be positioned to address attrition. Usual ongoing
vacancies related to anticipated turnover have been compounded by higher-than-expected retirements
during the pandemic. The information below summarizes turnover for the period of January 1, 2019
through February 28, 2021:
• 2019: 153 Detention Officers voluntarily separated, 29 retired and 5 involuntarily separated.
• 2020: 142 Detention Officers voluntarily separated, 40 retired and 20 involuntarily separated.
• 2021 (January and February): 24 Detention Officers voluntarily separated, 3 retired and 5
involuntarily separated.
Action Taken
To address the issue of low application numbers, MCSO has taken the following steps to increase the
applicant pool for Detention Officer:
1 A Lateral Detention Officer is an individual who has previously completed a detention or corrections academy and
has prior experience working as a detention or corrections officer.

• Continued engagement with Davidson-Beluso (marketing firm) to advertise the position via
billboards, social media, radio, mobile (geo-fencing), Google, etc.
• Participation in virtual job fairs/employment events.
• Coordination with the MCSO public information team to message employment opportunities via
Office social media accounts.
• Posting of advertisements on niche law enforcement related job boards as well as other popular
employment websites (e.g., Zip Recruiter, Indeed, LinkedIn, etc.).
• Collaboration with AZ@Work to assist in sharing of MCSO employment opportunities
(particularly Detention Officer) with job seekers.
• Attendance at in-person job fairs/events where practical and safe to do so with appropriate
COVID-19 mitigation protocols.
Despite these efforts, at present, MCSO has not experienced any notable increase to the number of
applications received for the position of Detention Officer.
Proposal
While MCSO is committed to continuing the efforts previously mentioned, additional strategies must be
explored and considered; therefore, MCSO is proposing the implementation of a pilot Detention Officer
Employee Referral Incentive Program.
The purpose of the program is to incentivize employees to refer quality candidates suitable for
consideration for the position of Detention Officer. If successful, the benefits of the pilot program will
be as follows:
• Increased number of applications received, resulting in a sufficient candidate pipeline.
• Increased number of quality hires.
• Enhanced employee retention.
Research indicates that other correctional/detention agencies within the U.S. have implemented
employee referral incentive programs to increase the number and quality of applicants for
detention/corrections positions.
Below are a sample of agencies identified by MCSO:
Agency Details
King County, WA Eligible employee receives a total of $2,500 for a successful referral:
(Corrections & Juvenile
Detention Officers) • $1,250 at time a new employee begins work.
• $1,250 at time a new employee successfully completes
probation.
Delaware Department of Eligible employee receives a $1,000 incentive for a successful referral.
Corrections (Correctional
Officers)

Missouri Department of Eligible employee receives a $500 incentive for a successful referral:
Corrections (Corrections
Officers and Cooks) • $250 upon hire and successful completion of academy
• $250 after six months of employment
Nebraska Department of Eligible employee receives $10,000 over three years in four-month
Corrections (Corporal) increments ($1,111.11 every four months) for a successful referral.
Based on research and outreach to the identified agencies, while relatively new, they have seen an
increase in applications and quality hires since implementing their referral incentive programs.
When considering a referral incentive program for County employees, the incentive offered must be
meaningful enough to compel participation and motivate employees to identify and refer suitable
candidates for employment consideration; therefore, MCSO proposes the following structure for the
pilot program:
Detention Officer Trainee
• $1,000 monetary incentive paid to current MCSO employees that refer a Detention Officer
Trainee candidate who is subsequently hired and successfully completes initial probation (12
months or 18 months, if extended)
o Applicant cannot be a current County or Judicial Branch employee
o Applicant cannot be a former MCSO Detention Officer (or higher detention rank)
o Applicant must identify the referring employee (to include full name and serial number)
at time of application via NEOGOV supplemental question
 Eligibility:
• Must be a MCSO classified, unclassified or contract employee
• Cannot occupy an exempt level supervisor or manager role
• Employees of the following divisions who are listed as the referring
employee at the time of application are ineligible:
o MCSO Human Resources Bureau, specifically the Pre-
Employment Services Division
o MCSO Training Division, specifically those assigned to or
involved with the detention officer academy
 Incentives will be disbursed as follows:
• $500 at the time of successful hire (starts employment)
• $500 at time of initial probation completion
 Referring employee must remain active until their incentive is processed
through the payroll system:
• Every effort will be made to submit the incentive for processing within
14 days after the milestone has been achieved.
 No limit to the number of successful referrals by an employee.

Lateral Detention Officer
• $1,500 monetary incentive paid to current MCSO employees that refer a Lateral Detention
Officer candidate who is subsequently hired and successfully completes initial probation (12
months or 18 months, if extended)
o Applicant cannot be a current County or Judicial Branch employee
o Applicant cannot be a former MCSO Detention Officer (or higher detention rank)
o Applicant must identify the referring employee (to include full name and serial number)
at time of application via NEOGOV supplemental question
 Eligibility:
• Must be a MCSO classified, unclassified or contract employee
• Cannot occupy an exempt level supervisor or manager role
• Employees of the following divisions who are listed as the referring
employee at the time of application are ineligible:
o MCSO Human Resources Bureau, specifically the Pre-
Employment Services Division
o MCSO Training Division, specifically those assigned to or
involved with the detention officer academy
 Incentives will be disbursed as follows:
• $750 at the time of successful hire (starts employment)
• $750 at time of initial probation completion
 Referring employee must remain active until their incentive is processed
through the payroll system:
• Every effort will be made to submit the incentive for processing within
14 days after the milestone has been achieved.
 No limit to the number of successful referrals by an employee.
Timeline
To appropriately assess the effectiveness of this pilot program MCSO is requesting that the program be
authorized for up to 200 Detention Officer hires that commence employment on or prior to June 30,
2022, with the ability to extend if successful and with available funding.
Funding
MCSO will absorb costs associated with this pilot program in our FY22 and FY23 detention fund by
utilizing vacancy savings and other budget reductions, if needed. Using the highest of the two incentives
proposed ($1,500), the potential costs of the pilot program would include:
• $300,000 – estimated compensation
• $111,330 – estimated benefits compensation
o $411,330 – estimated total cost of pilot program
Using the above figures, we estimate that the per fiscal year cost would be approximately $205,665.

Conclusion
MCSO believes sufficient justification exists to consider new strategies for increasing the applicant pool
and candidate pipeline for Detention Officer. The pilot Detention Officer Employee Referral Incentive
Program provides a mechanism to engage current MCSO employees in the process of identifying and
referring quality candidates who are suitable for hire. If successful, the direct benefits of the pilot
program will result in 1) filling critical Detention Officer vacancies necessary to maintain safe and
efficient jail operations, 2) enhanced quality of hires, and 3) enhanced retention of MCSO employees
who participate in the referral incentive program.