OCEAN CITY – With the season rapidly approaching, the Ocean City Beach Patrol is facing a personnel shortfall, but if the ranks are not filled, there will not be any noticeable changes in coverage.
During a Beach Patrol budget presentation late last week, it was learned the department was coming up short on its projected staffing levels. Last year, the Ocean City Beach Patrol (OCBP) had a total of 206 surf rescue technicians (SRTs), or lifeguards. As of the budget meeting late last week, the OCBP was projected to have around 180 to 190 SRTs, or about a 10% difference.
However, there are still at least two more recruiting events and that number could change. The reasons for the shortfall are many, including competitive wages, increased recruiting incentives, and perhaps most importantly a critical affordable seasonal housing shortage. The OCBP and the town have increased the starting salary to $17.75 per hour this year, but the other challenges have proven difficult to overcome.
The OCBP does have a high return rate approaching 90%, but the challenge has been to fill out the ranks with new recruits. With two recruiting events remaining and a little over a month before the guards hit the beach, the number of new SRTs appears to be falling short, according to longtime Beach Patrol Captain Butch Arbin.
“Last year, we had 40 new,” he said. “As of this session, we have 18 new. We do have about 90% of our staff from last year who want to return.”
Pay $20 to start. Stop being cheap. Increase across the board. These people are saving lives, and policing the beach. Do the right thing.
You can get a job at a local chicken plant here for $23. Further, OC promised to refund bus applicants costs (driving records) over a month ago and that is all they got (the promise).
You are suggesting to an entity to be smart and take appropriate measures. I.e., do the right thing.
Bwahahahahahahahahahah. The entity is unable to do that. Plus any extra revenue generated must go to marketing. Bwahahahahahahahahaha. Or to look after decades of complaints to build affordable housing in West OC. Bwahahahahahahaha Or to prepare for lawsuits when enforcing cussing or smoking ordances on the boards. Bwahahahahahahaahahahah
Do the right thing for one of the most important emergency service jobs on the island? Bwahahahahahahahahaha
Me being a UMES grad…. I wants 100 dolla an hour to live guard