Training - Police union: "Warning signal" in the study
The German Police Trade Union (DPolG) in Saarland warns about the consequences of the multitude of dismissals and repetitions in the basic studies for the training of higher police service. According to DPolG chief Markus Sehn, 15 students have been dismissed due to not achieving the study goal, and another 14 must repeat the one-year basic study, followed by two years of main study. In total, 140 students were hired as provisional civil servants by the state in October 2023. "The loss of 29 students this year is a warning sign that cannot be ignored," Sehn said. Instead, the appeal of the police profession and the study must be increased to attract a sufficient number of students to the profession.
DPolG's demands
The state chairman fears that the personnel problem of the Saarland police will worsen with such dramatic numbers. Therefore, DPolG demands, among other things, a second hiring date in May, a special allowance for students, and the inclusion of the failure rate in the hiring number.
"The flood of dismissals, terminations, and repetitions will make the interior minister's plan to have 2,900 police officers in Saarland by 2032 unachievable. We have warned about this," Sehn said. Therefore, the union demands 150 new hires per year and an immediate and significant improvement in appeal.
CDU: "Catastrophe for the future of the police"
The interior spokeswoman of the CDU faction, Anja Wagner-Scheid, spoke of a "catastrophe for the future of the police" in view of the current numbers. The state must now counter this, introduce an immediate program, and make "internal security" a top priority.
Like the Police Trade Union, the CDU politician demands a special payment on the trainee's allowance, the hiring of the promised 150 trainees per year, and the relief of the entire police force through the hiring of staff on a contract basis.
In the long term, police officers in Saarland must be better paid, the police allowance increased, and promotions granted more quickly.
The ongoing personnel problems, as evident by the high dismissal and repetition rates, are causing concerns within the German Police Trade Union (DPolG). These issues could potentially worsen the personnel problem within the Saarland police force, as suggested by DPolG's state chairman.
