Women Don't Want to Become Seattle Cops

The police department's quest to hire more women is failing.

With only four more years left, the Seattle Police Department couldn’t be further away from meeting its goal of hiring 30 percent women officers by 2030. Fewer than 10 percent of the department’s recruits in the past year have been women—a steep drop from 2021, the year SPD signed the 30x30 Pledge.

The department recruited women at a relatively steady clip in the five years before it joined 30x30. Women made up 17 percent of academy classes each year on average. Ironically, recruitment didn’t take a nosedive until SPD started to implement the 30x30 initiative’s “low- and no-cost actions…to improve the representation and experiences of women in law enforcement.”

So far, these “actions” have been limited. The city has not implemented the more ambitious aspects of 30x30. The Imagine Institute, which operates the city’s childcare assistance program, is under contract to explore childcare “options” but it has yet to produce a proposal. Meanwhile, progress has stalled on other initiatives, like flexible scheduling and mentorship.

While the department may be slow to roll out improvements to its environment, there’s nothing to stop it from marketing itself as a great place for women to work. The city paid Arizona-based Epic Productions nearly $300,000 to produce a series of “female-focused recruiting” videos. The videos haven’t had much effect on social media. Views and engagement are low across platforms.

Despite their high production value, these videos seem to do precious little to combat a bigger problem: SPD’s reputation. Over the past few years, the city has faced several high-profile workplace discrimination cases. Beyond what’s happening in the courts, the department has long tolerated domestic violence and sexual harassment.

Whatever lies behind the problem, it’s clear that SPD is struggling to hire women even while its overall recruitment picture is rosy and that the current strategy isn’t working.

Maybe it’s time to consider adopting a more realistic goal. Instead of 30 by 2030, SPD should aim to recruit 20 by 2120.