Police report big increase in applicants
By Brandon Masuoka
Advertiser Staff Writer
In its first serious recruiting push since the Sept. 11 attacks, the Honolulu Police Department has received more than the usual number of applications.
As of Monday, 1,239 people have applied to become police officers since November, said Capt. Dave Kajihiro of the Human Resources Division. The application deadline is March 22.
The increase in applications could be attributed to a media advertising blitz, unemployment resulting from Sept. 11 and a longer application period, Kajihiro said.
The 1,239 are applying to take a test to become recruits for classes beginning in December.
Usually, the department gets 800 to 900 applications in a span of three or four months. However, this round of recruiting was extended to five months because the city's Department of Human Resources was busy accepting Fire Department applications earlier, Kajihiro said.
Every year, the Police Department loses an average of 120 officers through retirements or resignations and for other reasons, Kajihiro said. As of Jan. 31, the department had 2,032 authorized positions for sworn officers and 266 vacancies. There are now 205 recruits in various aspects of training to fill the vacancies, said police spokeswoman Jean Motoyama.
Kajihiro said recent advertisements at Consolidated Theatres, in the University of Hawai'i campus newspaper and on radio and prime-time television have contributed to the increase in applications. Also, people may be turning to the Police Department for jobs since the Sept. 11 economic fallout, Kajihiro said.
"This is one job that is a pretty stable, one that you can get in," Kajihiro said. It's "pretty hard to get in" because of job standards to be met, as well as screening and background checks, "but I think once people get in and if they like the job, they'll stay and make it a career."
Applications are available at all police stations on O'ahu, satellite city halls and the city Department of Human Resources, and on the Web site for HPD.
