Worcester police announced Wednesday the department is launching a pilot program for body cameras.

The program will run from May to November, police said.

Twenty officers will wear the cameras during regular duty, including 16 officers from the Operations Division, two from the Traffic Division and two from the Neighborhood Response Team.

Those officers volunteered to participate in the program, police said.

“The officers who are participating in the pilot program have been thoroughly trained in the operation of the cameras and the department’s policy about their proper use,” police said.

Axon, the leading national provider of police body cameras, is the vendor for Worcester’s pilot program. The value of the donation is $33,174, according to City Council documents.

The city is not paying Axon for any part of the pilot program, police said.

In addition to 20 cameras for the participating officers, the company will provide an extra 20 cameras in case of malfunction, police said.

The cameras record audio and video. Data is uploaded to the cloud when the officer places the camera in a docking bay at the end of a shift.

“We hope to use our body cameras to increase transparency, resolve complaints, de-escalate volatile situations, and improve our training. Our officers do amazing work day in and day out, and we have confidence that this will be captured in the footage," Police Chief Steven Sargent said. "During the pilot, we will assess the effectiveness of the cameras and continue to study the most productive way to use them.”

The city of Springfield and its police department last year agreed to a four-year contract that includes the use of body cameras

Worcester, the second-largest city in New England, joins the Massachusetts State Police and Boston Police in running pilot police camera programs.