After reviewing several Police Departments in Colorado I finally visited the website for the Police up in Fort Collins. I started comparing and reviewing the benefits and I have to say the benefits for a Police Officer in Fort Collins are really impressive. Not only are the salaries extremely competitive, but also the other benefits are impressive – especially if you compare them to jobs at large, public or privately held companies.
These days you hear about rising cost for health insurance all over the place. Employers are slashing their contributions for retirement plans or stop them altogether. Tuition reimbursements are a scare and training is barely provided. Vacation time is limited in many cases. The list goes on and on and it kind of reminds how it feels when you drop of your car at the dealership for an oil change and then they come back with a list of things that are wrong and need to be addressed. Anyway, the Police in Fort Collins is proud to take care of their employees with a very decent salary and benefit package.
Salaries start in the low $50 thousands. Pay goes up with experience and based on your skill set / Education. Every officer receives a minimum of 88 hours of vacation time per year with additional options to get up to 60 more hours awarded. Police Officers that need to work on holidays are able to earn up to 2.5 times their normal salaries for those days. Police officers have a 4 day work week, but need to expect to work night shifts or weekends, too. Shift assignments are usually based on seniority and skills/experience.
The financial security of their officers seems to be important to the City of Fort Collins. Police Officers receive a generous match of up to 8% for contributions made to the 401 (K) plan. In addition, they become fully vested within 3 years. Many private employers offer maybe 4% match/contribution and require 5-7 years of work before an employee becomes fully vested. Furthermore officers can save money into a Deferred Compensation Plan (457) and receive another 3% match from their employer. And last but not least a retirement health care savings plan is available as well. So, Fort Collins Police Officers definitely have some great financial incentives as part of their benefit package.
Health insurance is available for officers and their families. Life insurance is available for officers with an optional coverage for family members. I assume that family members have to go through an approval or review process with the insurance, but this is standard anywhere you work. Officers can get their uniforms cleaned for free as part of their benefit package. They also receive all work related equipment for free.
As it is standard with most Police Departments these days, Police Officers need to supply their own firearms. The department will provide a list of approved weapons so that certain standards are met across the board. This step is standard to ensure that officers carry weapons that are powerful enough to support their safety as well as the safety of the community.
Police officers interested in further improving their skills and education are eligible for tuition reimbursement. Certain restrictions apply and it is recommend to check with their supervisor and HR to make sure the educational program meets the requirements.
As mentioned earlier I have reviewed several police departments in the State of Colorado – including their salary and benefits packages. Fort Collins is definitely one that belongs into the top 5 for Colorado. For individuals interested in working for the Police up in Fort Collins would also be able to enjoy one of the best places in the United States to live in. Money Magazine had Fort Collins on their list just a couple years ago. If you are interested in working as a Police Officer in Fort Collins, please check out the website for the Police Department. Currently Fort Collins employs roughly 170 Police Officers.