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Hungarian police officers’ starting salary is lower than 520 EUR/month!
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Inflation is skyrocketing in Hungary, and wages in the private sector are constantly increasing. However, the salaries in the public sector do not change, which means that teachers, police officers, librarians, and nurses lose more and more money every month. Not surprisingly, these sectors struggle with considerable labour shortages. But there are other reasons why young people do not choose to become police officers.
Falling number of police cadets
According to rtl.hu, the number of young Hungarians who choose to become policemen and policewomen decreased significantly in the last few years. In 2014, 3,060 applicants wanted to become non-commissioned officers. Their training lasted two years. This number fell to 460 this year. Official data show that only 10 pc of the police officer positions are unfilled, but union leaders stress that the system would need significantly more officers to avoid their frequent burnout and redeployment.
Unions highlight that most of the crew providing service at the Budapest police departments come from the countryside.
Since there are not enough new cadets for the long training period, the government introduced a shortened one. The 10-month police patrol training welcomed 1,282 students in 2021. However, a third of them do not even start the training since they fail the aptitude test.
The official data is misleading
Experience shows that the 10-month training is not sufficient to prepare police officers for the challenges they will face on the streets, union leaders believe. For example, they are expected to know and routinely use more than 800 different acts, which is impossible. Unions highlight that the official data is misleading. The high number of vacant positions does not result in the system’s collapse as many officers work overtime. Furthermore, they regularly work far from their homes.
Géza Pongó, the secretary of the Független Rendőr Szakszervezet (Independent Police Union, FRSZ), said that most officers in service in Budapest are redeployed from the countryside.
Great Advertising and Incentive – to attract and draw in – new recruits – to the Police rank numbers.
Astounding – quite disgraceful – when you consider what Officers of the Law – there JOBS – that does put there lives daily at Risk, and are paid to PROTECT and Safeguard – our LIVES – to think this is a leval of renumeration they receive – 3rd World.
We know – the continuing RESTLESSNESS within the Educators/Teachers profession in Hungary – the numbers who have left – continue to leave – through LOW wage levels – and the subject of this artice – centered on Police – another matter of confirmation just the out of touch postion the present Government of Hungary remains.