Minnesota Police Association Launches Website To Help Combat Hiring Crisis

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Minnesota police chiefs hope a new outreach program can help solve what they consider a hiring crisis.

The website wearthebadge.org features videos of officers explaining what life is like on the force.

The Minnesota Chiefs of Police Association launched the initiative Wednesday. They hope the site helps departments recruit new officers, and keep the ones they have.

"A robust economy means a lot of options for people in terms of the jobs they pursue, but that doesn't mean they're going to stay there," said Bloomington Police Chief Jeff Potts. "For those people who had an interest in law enforcement as a kid, and they're still in college, we're looking to try and attract them to actually come over and see what it's like."

The association says there are 20,000 fewer officers today than five years ago nationwide. They blame that, in part, on lower salaries and extra scrutiny.