The Mahoning County Sheriff's Department is having trouble hiring deputies. 

Mahoning County Sheriff Jerry Greene told 21 News the root of the problem is pay.

Right now, the starting wage is $14 an hour.

Greene says he needs the county commissioners to work with him to raise that so they can compete with other departments.

The sheriff says that it is difficult to hire right now because other departments in the area offer better pay at about $21 an hour.

He says that about a year-and-a-half ago, they lost some of the department's officers because of the pay gap said it has been difficult to replace them. 

Green has started a campaign to attract deputies to the department, including advertisements on Facebook and soon-to-come billboards throughout Mahoning County.

Billboards will be put up on Market Street, South Avenue, Mahoning Avenue and Western Reserve Road.