The city of Charleston is having trouble retaining employees, especially those outside of the police and fire departments.
These workers, often referred to as “non-sworn” or “civilians,” are leaving at a higher rate than in years past, according to an internal survey conducted by the city.
So far in 2022, 62 percent of exiting employees cited pay as their main reason for leaving. That’s up from 47 percent who cited the same reason last year. The city has over 900 civilian employees. If current trends from January through April continue, the city will see 33 percent of its civilian staff turn over by the end of the year.
“We’ve lost about 10 percent of our non-sworn employees just through the end of last month,” said Ryan Landry, Charleston’s compensation and human resources data manager.