There is a major retention issue in the Queensland Police Service, with more than 500 officers leaving the force in the past year.
The Queensland Police Union claims the high volume of domestic violence cases is one of the main reasons.
President Shane Prior says domestic and family violence incidents are up 25 percent in the Mackay region.
“In reality, that’s 4,600 jobs our police have had to go to for domestic and family violence,” Mr Prior says.
“For a young officer coming in, fresh out of the academy, it can be very confronting.”
Mr Prior also says difficulty finding affordable accommodation when relocating is another challenge young police are facing.
“Police fresh out of the academy are expected to pay $700 to $800 a week rent,” he says.
“We have police in a single motel room without kitchen or laundry facilities, we have police in Bowen living in a converted shed, and we have a first-year constable whose parents are paying for his rent at a sharehouse in Mackay.”
The Police Union is now calling on whoever wins the state election to introduce rental subsidies for officers that move to regional areas.
“For an election that apparently has a focus on crime, the politicians aren’t talking about retention of the hard-working men and women in blue, they aren’t offering incentives,” Mr Prior says.
