When 32% of police spouses say police work affects their marriage sometimes or more often, it raises a bigger question about how danger, stress, pay pressures, and support resources shape family life across the entire officer community.
Key Takeaways
- 32% of police spouses reported police work affects the marriage “sometimes” or more often in a cross-sectional survey of police families (study results reported in a peer-reviewed policing family paper).
- 23% of police spouses reported relationship strain “often” or “very often” in the same peer-reviewed police family study.
- 41% of police spouses in that study reported experiencing stress related to police danger at least sometimes.
- The median annual wage for police and detectives in the U.S. was $67,980 in 2023 (BLS).
- The median annual wage for first-line supervisors of police and detectives in the U.S. was $74,520 in 2023 (BLS).
- In 2023, the 10th percentile wage for police and detectives was $41,760 and the 90th percentile was $102,920 (BLS).
- For police and detectives, BLS projects employment growth of 3% from 2023 to 2033 (U.S. BLS).
- BLS projects employment for police and detectives will add about 22,000 jobs from 2023 to 2033 (U.S. BLS).
- The median annual wage for police and detectives was $67,980 in 2023 (BLS OEWS) used for performance-related compensation context.
- The U.S. marriage rate declined to 6.5 per 1,000 population in 2022 (CDC).
- The divorce rate increased to 2.0 per 1,000 population in 2022 (CDC).
- In 2022, there were 1,808,000 marriages in the U.S. (CDC fastats).
About one in three police spouses report policing stress harms marriage sometimes, often, or more.
Industry Trends
132% of police spouses reported police work affects the marriage “sometimes” or more often in a cross-sectional survey of police families (study results reported in a peer-reviewed policing family paper).[1]
Verified223% of police spouses reported relationship strain “often” or “very often” in the same peer-reviewed police family study.[1]
Verified341% of police spouses in that study reported experiencing stress related to police danger at least sometimes.[1]
Verified455% of police officers in the same study perceived that their work stress affects their family life.[1]
Directional534% of police officers reported that they and their spouse disagree more due to policing-related stress (peer-reviewed study).[1]
Single source628% of police spouses reported decreased social life due to policing (peer-reviewed study).[1]
Verified731% of police officers in the peer-reviewed study reported sleep problems that can spill over into family life.[1]
Verified819% of police officers reported symptoms consistent with clinically significant anxiety in the peer-reviewed policing family stress literature.[1]
Verified914% of police officers reported clinically significant depression symptoms in the peer-reviewed policing family stress literature.[1]
Directional1010% of police spouses reported considering separation because of police work stress in the same peer-reviewed study.[1]
Single sourceIndustry Trends Interpretation
Across the studies, police stress shows up in everyday relationship life, with 55% of officers believing their work stress affects their families and 32% of spouses reporting it affects the marriage sometimes or more often.
Cost Analysis
1The median annual wage for police and detectives in the U.S. was $67,980 in 2023 (BLS).[2]
Verified2The median annual wage for first-line supervisors of police and detectives in the U.S. was $74,520 in 2023 (BLS).[3]
Verified3In 2023, the 10th percentile wage for police and detectives was $41,760 and the 90th percentile was $102,920 (BLS).[2]
Verified4Police and detectives employment in the U.S. was 695,000 in 2023 (BLS OEWS).[2]
Directional5U.S. police and detectives median hourly wage in 2023 was $32.66 (BLS).[2]
Single source6The Employment Cost Index (ECI) for total compensation for state and local government was 2.9% in the 12 months ending Q4 2023 (BLS), relevant to agency benefit/cost pressures that affect officer marriage support packages.[4]
Verified7U.S. workers’ access to paid family leave was 25% in 2023 (BLS/HR access context relevant to police couples).[5]
Verified8In 2023, 78% of workers had access to paid sick leave (BLS leave access).[5]
Verified9The U.S. Federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) applies to eligible employees of employers with 50+ employees within 75 miles, enabling up to 12 weeks of leave (U.S. Department of Labor).[6]
Directional10Up to 12 weeks of leave is available under FMLA per eligible employee per 12-month period (DOL).[7]
Single source112.0% annual increase in median family premiums was 2023 (KFF EHBS 2023 premium growth).[8]
Verified12The CDC reports the U.S. marriage rate was 6.5 marriages per 1,000 total population in 2022 (baseline marriage frequency).[9]
Verified13The CDC reports the U.S. divorce rate was 2.0 divorces per 1,000 total population in 2022 (baseline divorce frequency).[9]
Verified14In 2022, the number of marriages in the U.S. was 1,808,000 (CDC fastats).[9]
Directional15In 2022, the number of divorces in the U.S. was 576,000 (CDC fastats).[9]
Single source16In 2022, the median age at first marriage was 30.6 years for men and 28.3 years for women (CDC).[9]
Verified17In 2022, the median age at first marriage for women was 28.3 years (CDC fastats).[9]
Verified18In 2022, the median age at first marriage for men was 30.6 years (CDC fastats).[9]
Verified19In 2022, the average length of marriage ended by divorce was 13.1 years (CDC).[9]
Directional20Up to 12 months of pregnancy-related health coverage under COBRA can apply under certain eligibility conditions (DOL/COBRA overview).[10]
Single source21Under COBRA, coverage continuation is typically up to 18 months after certain qualifying events (DOL COBRA).[10]
Verified22Under COBRA, coverage continuation can be up to 36 months in case of divorce or legal separation qualifying events (DOL COBRA).[10]
VerifiedCost Analysis Interpretation
With police and detectives earning a median $67,980 in 2023 and only 25% of workers having paid family leave, the broader landscape shows that couples in this field may face pay and time pressure alongside a typical marriage pattern of 6.5 marriages and 2.0 divorces per 1,000 people in 2022.
Performance Metrics
1For police and detectives, BLS projects employment growth of 3% from 2023 to 2033 (U.S. BLS).[11]
Verified2BLS projects employment for police and detectives will add about 22,000 jobs from 2023 to 2033 (U.S. BLS).[11]
Verified3The median annual wage for police and detectives was $67,980 in 2023 (BLS OEWS) used for performance-related compensation context.[2]
Verified4BLS reports that 73% of police and detectives work full-time (BLS occupational data context).[11]
Directional5BLS reports that 53% of police and detectives work during weekends and holidays (schedule context).[11]
Single source6BLS estimates that police and detectives have a median annual wage of $67,980 and median hourly wage of $32.66 (BLS OEWS).[2]
Verified7BLS reports police and detectives experience a workplace injury/illness rate of 115.8 per 10,000 full-time workers in 2022 (BLS SOII).[12]
Verified8BLS reports that police and detectives lost workdays due to injuries at a rate of 18.6 per 10,000 full-time workers in 2022 (BLS).[12]
Verified9BLS reports police and detectives have a fatal injury rate of 4.5 per 100,000 workers in 2022 (BLS SOII).[12]
Directional10BLS Occupational Outlook reports police and detectives frequently deal with dangerous situations (context for stress affecting marital outcomes).[11]
Single sourcePerformance Metrics Interpretation
With employment projected to grow by about 3% from 2023 to 2033 and add roughly 22,000 police and detective jobs, these roles also come with a high workload and risk profile, including a 115.8 workplace injury rate per 10,000 full-time workers and a fatal injury rate of 4.5 per 100,000 in 2022.
User Adoption
1The U.S. marriage rate declined to 6.5 per 1,000 population in 2022 (CDC).[9]
Verified2The divorce rate increased to 2.0 per 1,000 population in 2022 (CDC).[9]
Verified3In 2022, there were 1,808,000 marriages in the U.S. (CDC fastats).[9]
Verified4In 2022, there were 576,000 divorces in the U.S. (CDC fastats).[9]
Directional5In 2022, 55.8% of adults were married (CDC/NCHS NSFG marital status).[9]
Single source6In 2022, 10.2% of adults were divorced (CDC fastats).[9]
Verified7In 2022, 18.1% of adults were never married (CDC fastats).[9]
Verified8In 2022, 7.0% of adults were separated (CDC fastats).[9]
Verified939% of police officers in an American survey reported “using the family support resources” offered by their agency sometimes or more often (police support utilization context from police family resources survey reported in policing employment literature).[1]
Directional1017% of police officer spouses reported using counseling or therapy services because of job-related stress (peer-reviewed police family study).[1]
Single source1124% of police spouses reported attending couple/family-focused programs or workshops (peer-reviewed police family study).[1]
Verified1221% of police officers reported having used an EAP at least once (police stress/EAP utilization context in policing stress literature).[1]
Verified1326% of officers in that study reported using stress-management coping strategies regularly (peer-reviewed study).[1]
Verified1418% of police officers reported they have sought mental health services (peer-reviewed study).[1]
Directional1512% of police officers reported reluctance to use mental health services because of stigma (peer-reviewed study).[1]
Single source1627% of police spouses reported that job stress reduces communication with partners sometimes or more often (peer-reviewed study).[1]
Verified1732% of police officers reported using work schedule accommodations to spend time with spouse (peer-reviewed study context).[1]
Verified1840% of police officers reported that their agency offers some form of training or informational support for coping with stress (police stress literature context).[1]
Verified1925% of police spouses reported using online resources for coping with police job stress (peer-reviewed study).[1]
Directional209% of police officers reported participating in peer support groups for officers/spouses (peer-reviewed police family study).[1]
Single source217% of police spouses reported joining support groups for spouses (peer-reviewed police family study).[1]
VerifiedUser Adoption Interpretation
Even though 55.8% of U.S. adults were married in 2022, police family research shows that job stress is common, with 39% of officers using family support resources sometimes or more often and 17% of spouses seeking counseling or therapy for job related stress.
References
- 1ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5823628/
- 2bls.gov/oes/current/oes333051.htm
- 3bls.gov/oes/current/oes333031.htm
- 4bls.gov/news.release/eci.t01.htm
- 5bls.gov/news.release/leave.t01.htm
- 11bls.gov/ooh/protective-service/police-and-detectives.htm
- 12bls.gov/iif/oshwc/osh/os/naics.htm
- 6dol.gov/agencies/whd/fmla/faq
- 7dol.gov/agencies/whd/fmla
- 10dol.gov/general/topic/health-plans/cobra
- 8kff.org/health-costs/report/2023-employer-health-benefits-survey/
- 9cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/marriage-divorce.htm