As of Jan. 1, a new hiring cycle has begun via the Pennsylvania State Police, who are now recruiting cadets and liquor enforcement officer trainees.
According to a news release, cadets earn around $32.16 per hour, or around $66,911 annually, while liquor enforcement officers earn around $24.49 per hour, or $50,950 annually. The official website of the commonwealth of Pennsylvania states that, following training, liquor enforcement officers’ pay increases to $54,226 per year.
As of late 2023, the educational requirement of 30 to 60 college credits to be accepted into cadet training was eliminated, allowing for easier entry to the position.
Adam Reed, the director of communications with the Pennsylvania State Police, said that with the education requirement reduction, more than 10,000 applications came in.
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Resource Officer Ralph Morris works in his office at the Agency for Community EmPOWERment of NEPA’s Workforce Initiative Program in the Marketplace at Steamtown in Scranton Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. (SEAN MCKEAG / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
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The entrance to the office at the Agency for Community EmPOWERment of NEPA’s Workforce Initiative Program in the Marketplace at Steamtown in Scranton Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. (SEAN MCKEAG / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
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Computers used by clients in the office at the Agency for Community EmPOWERment of NEPA’s Workforce Initiative Program in the Marketplace at Steamtown in Scranton Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. (SEAN MCKEAG / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
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Pennsylvania State Police
Pennsylvania State Police barracks at Dunmore.
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Pocono State Police
A photo taken at a Pennsylvania State Police training shows cadets standing in a row.
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Resource Officer Ralph Morris works in his office at the Agency for Community EmPOWERment of NEPA’s Workforce Initiative Program in the Marketplace at Steamtown in Scranton Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. (SEAN MCKEAG / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
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“A big spike in those applications did come after that college credit requirement was removed,” Reed explained.
All applicants must still have either a high school diploma, or a GED certificate, as well as a valid Pennsylvania driver’s license, and be at least age 21. Liquor enforcement officers must commit to approximately 16 weeks of training, while cadets must take approximately 28 hours of training. According to the state’s website, training for cadets is paid, with applicants earning a salary of $1,595 biweekly during training, and liquor enforcement officers earning $1,519 biweekly during training.
Reed believes the rate of pay is noteworthy.
“We feel we’re proud of our starting pay rates, and these starting pay rates are going to increase fairly quickly after you gain some tenure on the job,” he said, adding that the benefits are also admirable.
“Our benefits that were afforded through the state are extremely good, not only for the member, but also for their families,” Reed said, explaining that health insurance and more are part of the hiring package. “Once you retire, you get a pension; that is seemingly harder to find these days.”
Potential applicants need not have a squeaky clean back history; Reed explained that while not all prior mistakes are deal breakers, some are.
“Felonies would be automatic disqualifiers,” he said. “Otherwise, it’s something that we would look at on a case-by-case basis.”
John Zang of Exeter, who works as the program coordinator for the workforce initiative at Agency for Community Empowerment of NEPA, says the salary alone makes the jobs something that would be of interest to many of the people who they aim to help find jobs.
“The wage itself is a big get,” Zang said. “We’re all about helping people be able to become independent, and part of that obviously is the wage.”
Zang said that most of the people the agency encounters are earning under $15 per hour, and that out of 295 people who’ve come for employment help in the last year, they have been able to help 73 people earn at least $15 per hour, which he called, “not a livable wage.”
“Fifteen years ago, it should have been that,” Zang said. “It’s not even efficient anymore,” he added, elaborating that while “$50,000 is nothing to sneeze at, it’s not what it was 10 years ago, but still for this area, it’s pretty good.”
While the pay is decent for the region, Robert M. Urban, a community services officer with the Pennsylvania State Police in Dunmore, explained the job will appeal to people who care about more than a decent pay rate.
“Nobody gets into law enforcement, or they shouldn’t, because of money and benefits,” Urban said. “It’s something that somebody wants to do; they want to go out and help people, make a contribution to society. I know when I became a trooper, that’s what I wanted to do … and the salary and the other perks with the job are just the benefit of you wanting to do that specific type of detail.”
He said that the role of cadet and of liquor enforcement officer, or LEO, are quite different. Cadets’ duties encompass a wider range, while LEOs’ duties target violations around liquor-related issues. Both are trained to use and carry a state-issued service pistol. Urban, in his 20th year working with the Pennsylvania State Police, explained that a big part of the work is being involved in the community.
“I like helping people as a community service officer, talking to people, going to schools and talking to kids,” Urban said. “A lot of time, a negative light gets cast on officers like we’re scary, bad people. I like to make myself available to talk to kids, talk to people. We want to be the person that is your first line of defense. We want to help you, we want you to trust in us any time you have a problem; to come to us, not to run away from us. Especially with kids, we do not want kids to be afraid of us.”
He explained community involvement is a major part of the job.
“A big part of law enforcement anymore is to get out there with the public, just to help people realize there’s a person behind the badge,” Urban said. “We wake up, we put our pants on in the same way anybody else does every day.”
Chrissy Manuel, the director of development and communications of United Neighborhood Centers, said she felt confident that the roles had qualities that would captivate the curiosity of the people who come in for their workforce development program.
“The people, the clients that we work with are looking for those types of jobs, that have a career path and training, and good, family-sustaining wages, so I think that is something that people would be interested in,” Manuel said.
Applicants for the cadet or liquor enforcement officer roles are required to additionally schedule and take a written examination, an oral examination, a polygraph test, a background check, a physical readiness test, a medical screening, and a psychological screening.
The current state police cadet selection cycle is now open through March 31. The liquor enforcement officer hiring cycle is open through the end of April.