Jemison Police Officers will now be eligible for pay raises after the Jemison City Council passed an ordinance establishing pay grades for full-time officers.

“The purpose and importance of this pay scale is for recruiting and retention of good quality employees,” Jemison Police Chief Shane Fulmer said. “This will provide incentives for those currently working in the department and enhance the services that we filter down to the citizens of the city.”

The city approved roughly $20,000 from the police department budget for the pay scale that will be implemented on Oct. 1.

Everyone in the department will receive a pay raise and the new “pay grade” scale established by Fulmer will increase 3 percent for each pay grade completed.

“The importance of this pay scale is we want to have the very best people we can get,” Fulmer said. “We don’t always want to be selecting from the bottom of the barrel when it comes to quality and experience with police officers. To have current employees know they can always do the right thing and strive to increase their level of training and education and know that there will be incentive for that is a great thing.”

There are currently 11 officers employed at the JPD who will now receive pay incentives for completing certified training such as a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice or related field, a reserve program director or completion of an associate’s degree in criminal justice.

Fulmer said a police officer is not required to complete certain levels of specialized training before being hired but the pay scale will now provide incentive for the officers to do so.

“We have a few officers who don’t have a college degree or don’t have a certified training but they will now,” Fulmer said. “They might not have wanted to go ahead and get the training because it isn’t something you have to do to fulfill your duties as a police officer, but if you want to reach beyond your normal scope then you will receive an incentive.”

The Jemison City Council passed the ordinance during a regularly scheduled council meeting on July 15, but the police department pay scale has taken several years before officially being passed.