Every chief can quote the vacancy count. Far fewer can quote what one resignation actually costs, because the bill arrives in pieces: the academy seat, the field training officer's hours, the uniform and equipment issue, the year of reduced productivity while a rookie ramps up, and the overtime paid to cover the empty beat in the meantime. Stack those line items and a single departure lands well into six figures - before you price the thing that never comes back, which is the experience walking out the door.
This infographic stacks the bill so a finance director or council member can absorb it in ten seconds. That makes it a budget-hearing exhibit as much as a command staff slide: retention investments stop looking like soft spending the moment they sit next to the replacement invoice. It also reframes the wellness conversation - keeping one experienced officer is one of the cheapest line items an agency can buy.
For why officers actually stay - and the role recognition plays in it - see Officer Recognition and Retention.
