Hands off our Finest!
The Washington, D.C. police department has unleashed an ad blitz on the Big Apple’s buses and subways in a bold attempt to recruit New York City police officers to join their force.
The Metropolitan Police Department purchased 75 bus and 1,000 subway ads for the recruitment campaign, which started in January and will end on March 13, the MTA said.
One of the ads, spotted on an MTA subway train and posted to Twitter Wednesday, beckons “gamers” “foodies” “techies” and “influencers” to “join us” alongside an image of the MPD’s red, white and blue logo.
“HIRING CLASSES MONTHLY,” the ad screams.
“Join the Next Generation of DC Police,” it continues.
The banner includes a QR code that commuters can easily scan and a hiring website that boasts a $60,199 starting salary and $6,000 in rental assistance for the first six months on the job.
In comparison, NYPD cops are given a starting salary of just $42,500 and no rental assistance — but after five and a half years on the force, the pay jumps to $85,292, the NYPD’s career page states.
“Including holiday pay, longevity pay, uniform allowance, night differential and overtime, police officers may potentially earn over $100,000 per year,” the page reads.
While MPD has social media and digital ads that primarily reach markets on the East Coast but also across the country, transit ads have only been taken out in New York City and Washington D.C, the agency said.
“In this competitive job market, employers, including police departments, have to be creative and use innovative strategies to attract high-quality candidates. Due to COVID, Metro ridership in Washington, DC is significantly reduced. Accordingly, we are advertising on the exterior of Metro Buses throughout Washington,” Briana Burch, a public affairs specialist with MPD, explained in an email.
“This is the first time in recent memory that MPD has placed ads in the NYC subway which continues to see strong ridership. At this time, we are not specifically focusing on any other transit systems besides DC and NYC.”
Burch noted “the vast majority” of recruitment efforts are concentrated locally “but it is customary for police departments to recruit from other jurisdictions.”
“Someone who wants to be a police officer in New York (and a few other states) may have to wait on a list for a few years before they are hired. The Washington, DC Metropolitan Police Department hires recruit classes monthly, and because of this, many people from New York and New Jersey join our department,” Burch said.
“We want to attract people who want to make a difference in the community now – not wait on a list for a few years.”
New York City cops had mixed feelings on the advertisements — one called it “hilarious” and asked how much they were paying while another pointed to the NYPD’s low starting salary as reason to jump ship.
“Everyone should go. Get the f–k out of this department. They’re not paying anything,” said an officer with more than two decades on the job.
“That’s why cops are leaving for Florida, Texas and Memphis because they’re giving cops $25,000… In other states, they appreciate police officers. They really do.”
Another officer, who works in Manhattan, said simply: “No thank you.”
The NYPD didn’t return a request for comment.
Additional reporting by Tina Moore and Larry Celona
