Photo: PBSO
Those with the desire to protect their community have a number of job opportunities today in South Florida.
The Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office is hosting a Career Fair with dozens of jobs available, including deputies.
"The Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office is very competitive in our salaries. Currently right now, someone coming in just initially being hired by PBSO...today's current starting salary for that position would be $60,080."
Human Resources Section Manager Latasha Henzie says they are also hiring for corrections deputies, support staff and dispatchers.
When it comes to the deputies' salary, she says the pay is as much as $20,000 more than police departments in the county are paying and between $7,000 and $10,000 more than what neighboring sheriff's offices are offering.
And with school starting August 10th, they need crossing guards.
"There are some positions we cannot be short on and this one in particular is one of those."
Last year, there was a shortage and deputies had to fill in at some intersections. This year, PBSO hopes to avoid that. Henzie says the agency has a critical need of 75 to 100 crossing guards and they go out of their way to ensure seniors and others with time available to work close to home.
"Obviously COVID has taken a lot of different industries backwards, but again this is a hot position where we have to provide the services to the community and to the public and to the children."
Henzie says those jobs pay just above $15 an hour and guards can work mornings and afternoons to pick up six hours a day.
"We have amazing benefits, very competitive with our salaries and it's a great place to work and we work for an amazing sheriff."
The job fair runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Palm Beach County Convention Center. Parking is free.