The Cobb County Sheriff’s Office is hosting a deputy career fair in Marietta this weekend to expedite the recruitment process for new employees.
Applicants on Saturday will be able to speak with current deputies and employees, complete a physical agility test and meet with recruiters. Returning applicants on Sunday will complete a background questionnaire and interview with recruiters.
Successful candidates will have to complete other tests in the hiring process. The fair can speed up the recruitment process by several weeks, according to the sheriff’s office.
Entry-level, full-time deputy sheriff positions earn between $46,000 and $70,840 per year.
Many departments have had difficulty filling positions amid a countywide staffing crisis, which has been at the center of budget talks. The sheriff’s office currently has 50 vacant deputy sheriff positions, Sgt. Jeremy Blake said.
Recruitment issues have stretched the department’s ability to staff the jail, causing employees to work overtime, sheriff officials said in their February budget presentation.
“I want to make sure that as I get my manpower set for what I need to do, that we’re able to help anyone who needs it,” Sheriff Craig Owens said in the presentation. “I want to make sure we can do that effectively.”
The national average for the ratio of inmates to deputies is nine to one, while Cobb County’s ratio is 45 inmates to one deputy, Owens said in the budget presentation.
In addition to filling vacancies, the sheriff’s office will add nine deputy positions in next year’s budget if approved by the Board of Commissioners.
The career fair will be held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Cobb County safety village in Marietta on Saturday and Sunday. More recruitment details can be found on the sheriff’s office website.
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