$20,000 handout to boost police recruits and HECS debts slashed

The state government has unveiled its latest strategy to boost police recruits as the QPS grapples with a broader labour supply shortage.

The Queensland Police Service will offer up to $20,000 to lure interstate officers to the state, in the latest move by the Palaszczuk government to boost cop numbers.

The new scheme will also include up to $20,000 being wiped off prospective officers’ HECS debt.

The QPS has struggled to strengthen officer numbers as forced retirements rise and the state government falls behind an election commitment to increase the size of the service by 1450 officers by 2025.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk announced the new $90m package at regional parliament in Cairns on Tuesday morning to attract recruits and other trained officers from across the country.

“Officers trained in other jurisdictions internationally and within Australia who come to work in Queensland will receive up to $20,000 in staged payments,” she said.

“And students studying in targeted university courses in Queensland will also be able to claim up to $20,000 in staged payments.”

Police Minister Mark Ryan said the financial incentive would assist with relocation costs for interstate and international recruits.

“In addition, the Queensland Police Service will contribute $20,000 towards the HECS debt of a number of eligible tertiary graduate applicants who join the QPS,” he said.

Queensland Police Commissioner Katarina Carroll

“Recruits at our police academies will also receive a cost-of-living training allowance which will significantly boost their pay while at the academy.”

Police Commissioner Katarina Carroll said the cash incentive was a game-changer as the force grappled with a broader work shortage.

“We’ve been quite upfront in the last several months with the labour market,” she said.

“With the retirements, the slightly higher attrition and the government commitments into the future, we have to do things very, very differently to get more people through our academy (and) to get more people into our organisation over the next few years.”

The announcement follows a suite of incentives and initiatives to address issues in Queensland to attract new officers into the force.

Last month, the state government passed new legislation to allow cops who have passed the aged of forced retirement to continue to serve in the capacity of “special constables”.

Officers will fill the gaps on the front line, similar to existing arrangements in teaching or nursing. It will apply to officers who have turned 60 and retired, or previously left the service and want to return.

In February, the state government struck a deal with the commonwealth to access hundreds of international recruits to bolster its police force.

The labour agreement was aimed at recruiting up to 500 cops a year for five years without the requirement to be an Australian citizen or permanent resident.