Calgary’s police chief said that while they’re still seeing police recruit applicants, numbers have noticeably dropped, largely due to the appeal of the field and competition from other law enforcement branches.  

Chief Mark Neufeld delivered an annual Calgary Police Service (CPS) update to the Community Development Committee on April 16, where he told councillors that they’re looking closely at recruitment issues after questions about capacity in departments within CPS. 

“That whole question of recruitment and retention and that type of thing is very live in a big city, because again, we need to be able to keep our resources up to be able to deliver those services now and into the future,” said Chief Neufeld. 

He was responding to questions from Ward 5 Coun. Raj Dhaliwal, who questioned how data was being used, and whether frontline policing was adequately staffed. He pointed to data showing three of the top 10 areas for crime in the northeast, and the population growth continues to be among the highest in Calgary.

“I just want to understand, how are we making sure that we are serving those growth areas with proper adequate policing?” Dhaliwal asked.

Neufeld said that capacity is an issue. In Ward 5, he said that the calls tend to be more complex, with weapons offences or domestic calls, compared with social disorder in areas like District 1 (downtown).

“We need to have the capacity to be able to go there, like proactively, to prevent those challenges that we’re seeing. I would say capacity is one of our biggest issues.”

Applications still coming in, but a noticeable drop

When asked after the meeting why there are recruitment challenges, Neufeld said that he thinks numbers have gone down due to a lack of interest in policing from young people. 

“I think the application numbers have gone down, in part because I think young people, if you look at some of the research, are interested in jobs around technology and this type of thing,” he said. 

“Not that that doesn’t exist in policing, but they may be less likely to be interested in a job where they’re having to work shifts.” 

In 2024, civilian recruitment decreased 23 per cent compared to 2023. For overall applications, there were 644 completed, a decrease of 22 per cent, according to the Calgary Police Service’s annual report.  

Neufeld said that the responsibilities of a police officer might be another reason why some people are not as interested in applying.   

“I think some of the negative discourse, too, and challenges that have been presented when you think about having to wear a body worn camera, and the amount of accountability that police officers face,” he said. 

“I think some people are like, that’s not really for me.” 

Recently, applicant levels have remained steady compared to previous years. CPS is now increasing the size of recruitment classes so that everyone who applies can begin paid recruitment training this year.   

The CPS application process is provincially regulated and is the first of a 12-step pre-hire requirement that can take up to a year to complete before beginning academy training. 

Neufeld also said that there’s heavy demand among other law enforcement for the limited recruiting pool available.

“When you look at the pool that we’re recruiting out of right now, there are a lot of people like transit sheriffs, loss prevention officers, the RCMP,” said Neufeld. 

With Alberta’s plans to create an independent police agency as another option away from the RCMP, recruitment is in high demand.  

“We talk about the new independent agency police service that the province is setting up,” said Neufeld. 

“So, there’s only so many people in the pool.”