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pricing) Judge backs OPD use of retired cops From the Judge Frank Roesch rejected arguments
from the Oakland Police Officers Association, which asked him to order the
city to bargain with the union over the employment of about 40 retired
officers and their assignments. Although the union contended the retirees were taking work away
from union members as part of an effort to civilianize the department, Roesch said that did not appear to be the case. Deputy Chief Jeff Israel said he was pleased with the ruling,
adding that the retired officers are performing crucial work for a department
that has more than 80 vacancies. Police union President Bob Valladon
said he was considering filing a grievance against the city for tapping a
retired officer as coordinator of the cadet program, rather than a union
member. The retired officers are paid $41.60 an hour and cannotwork more than 960 hours a year. They do not carry
a gun or a badge and cannot arrest anyone, officials said. Most have been assigned to investigations, while others are
examining the background of prospective police officers as part of the city's
push to fill the department's 83 vacancies. "We need our police force to be well-supported and our
community to be well-protected," City Attorney John Russo said in a
statement. "Now Chief ( Valladon said union
members should be assigned to do the investigative work, rather than the
retired officers. Last month, contract negotiations between the city and the
police union broke down over the city's demand that the chief have more
flexibility to run the department and union officials declared an impasse. Indy Police
OK New Contract From NEWS 6, April 21, 2007 Many officers of the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department
had been working without a contract for more than a year. The contract will keep officers' 2007 pay the same as that of
2006, but officers will get 3 percent raises in 2008, 4 percent raises in
2009, and 5 percent raises in 2010, according to the
FOP. "The men and women of the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police
Department are dedicated public servants who have been working without a
contract for more than a year," Indianapolis FOP President Aaron
Sullivan said in a news release. "They accepted the contract offer made
by the sheriff and city officials because it was the best possible contract
considering the administration's priorities and resources. "Now that the contract has been secured, we can begin to
address issues related to the merger and rising crime that are hindering law
enforcement officers." Low pay, low
interest and war hurting police recruitment efforts From the Tribune-Herald, April 21, 2007 City leaders are coming to a stark realization: There’s never a
police officer around when you need one — and they need a lot more than one. The Waco Police Department has 17 vacancies on the force, but
finding worthy applicants is proving harder than collaring some criminals. It’s left city officials debating what they need to do to
compete with other cities, some of them also strapped for police officers. Waco Police Sgt. Sherri Kirk-Swinson,
head of recruitment and a 27-year veteran of the force, says she’s stunned by
some applicant responses she hears during the screening process. Some applicants readily acknowledge they’re former drug users or
burglars, she says. They claim they’ll make better officers because they know
where to find drug dealers or how to break into buildings. “We lose the most (applicants) to heavy drug experimentation and
thefts,” she said. Civil service requirements and other regulations prevent
applicants with histories of drug use going back five years or those with
misdemeanor convictions from becoming police officers. Felony convictions
automatically disqualify police applicants. Some of those familiar with hiring problems also blame low pay
and an overall drop in interest in what is often a perilous profession. The
nation’s overly taxed military forces — a once-reliable source for police
applicants — also is cited, especially as the war in Within the last decade, Kirk-Swinson
says, she has seen the number of applicants for a The pool of applicants dwindles further — to less than 16 — by
the time applicants take civil service exams, agility tests and, the biggest
killer of all, background checks. Even so, Kirk-Swinson says the Waco
Police Department isn’t willing to compromise in terms of quality. “We can’t get desperate and say we’ve got to fill these positions . . . that’s not all there is to it,”
Kirk-Swinson said. “You’ve got to trust these
people to the citizens of Yet the situation has sometimes seemed desperate, especially as
the Waco City Council gradually has added more positions to the police
department to meet the demands of a growing city. “It looks like we have more of a need in recruitment than in
budgeting for more officers,” City Council member Robin McDurham
said during a recent council meeting. City officials plan to discuss possible solutions in the coming
months. Last fall, the five applicants who survived the testing and
screening process weren’t enough to fill the local police academy, so a
second recruiting session was scheduled last month. So far, nine applicants
have qualified from that session. Frank Sturzl, president of the Texas
Municipal League, says Even police departments in such cities as And the problem isn’t limited to city police departments. Five
vacancies exist at the Waco Police Association president Ken Reeves says much of the
problem boils down to police pay. He argues that it doesn’t compensate for the sacrifices officers
must make on the job such as working weekends and nights and holidays and
risking their lives in dangerous situations. When he decided to go from working as a service manager at a car
dealership to becoming a police officer, Reeves says he had to swallow a
$30,000 pay cut. He decided on the career move, however, because he wanted to
make a difference. But that doesn’t mean police shouldn’t seek more in
compensation. Waco City Manager Larry Groth says
local public safety salaries rank within the top quarter of comparable
mid-sized cities. An entry-level In Sturzl says cities
are increasingly limited when it comes to hiking police pay, especially as
city councils hesitate to bite the bullet and hike taxes to pay for them. It’s a reality that cadets at the Even so, cadet Michael Miller of Lorena says love of the job
must be more important than pay. Miller says he set his sights on joining the Waco Police
Department because of the fierce camaraderie of its officers. Reaching young people like Miller, who is 25, is crucial to
boosting recruitment, police experts say. But Waco Police Association president Reeves says
that thrill of law enforcement doesn’t beckon the way it once did. Young people, he says, have far more outlets for high-adrenaline
pursuits through games and sports. Over the past five years, the Waco Police Department has
advertised job openings online, which is where most applicants look nowadays,
Kirk-Swinson says. With 27 percent of the 228-member police force eligible for
retirement at year’s end, Chief Melis says hiring
young officers is a must. He says retaining police officers is yet another challenge,
though Groth says Desperate measures The Waco Police Department has tried various methods of
increasing recruitment, such as changing some job requirements and allowing
lateral entry pay for experienced officers. None has proven especially
successful, Melis says. The best the department can do for now is schedule civil service
exams more often in Despite the shortage in officers and the challenge of recruiting
them, Groth says he will continue to recommend
funding additional officers. Council member Randy Riggs says he supports such
measures. “The number one thing I hear from citizens,” Riggs said, “is
that they want to be safe.” Last year the city passed along a 5 percent raise to police and
firefighters, but Groth acknowledges the battle to
hike police pay won’t end there, especially as recruiting remains a problem. Reeves agrees. “People are going to have to wake up to the fact that they’re
going to have to start compensating public safety people to where they want
to do the job again,” he said. No union,
sheriff's deputies declare From
The office's sergeants and lieutenants voted unanimously March
22 to dismiss the Coastal Florida Police Benevolent Association as a bargaining
unit for the Sheriff's Office, and on April 10, the deputies voted two-to-one
to do the same. "I appreciate that the deputies were disappointed at how
long the process was taking, said Coastal Florida Police Benevolent
Association Executive Director Nate Ingram Thursday. "They
voted in collective bargaining three years ago and they still had no
contract. We're disappointed they decided to have us leave. They exercised
their right, although I'm not sure what the sticking points in the contract
were." Sheriff Tommy Seagraves said the main complaint against the
union was that it was not able to negotiate a labor contract. He said he
negotiated with the union eight to 10 times, but to no avail. The union and
management couldn't agree on how to handle arbitration. Officers voted in secret ballots, mailed to and from their
homes, Seagraves said. Seagraves said April 17 the two Sheriff's Office groups voted to
have the union represent them in early 2004, while Sheriff Ray Geiger still
held office. "When they voted the union in, they were concerned with job
security and retaining their jobs," Seagraves said. "We have since
developed a policy book that's very well-written and designed so we treat
everyone the same way." Ingram said job concerns are a typical reason why officers would
invite a union to represent them in dealing with management. "Typically, deputy sheriffs vote
in collective bargaining to have a voice in their wages and their conditions
of employment - sometimes they're unhappy or they want to maintain the
current levels they enjoy and they want to codify them in a contract." Other times, officers may be concerned that an incoming sheriff
will make radical changes that affect them, Ingram said. Seagraves said he's worked to demonstrate that written policies
he's introduced will be applied consistently to everyone in the Nassau County
Sheriff's office, and that's helped make the union less necessary for
deputies, sergeants and lieutenants, he said. "You've got laws the citizens are held to. It's the same as
running an organization," he said. "You've got to have written
policies. We didn't have a policy book when I took office. There were
policies, but they were at the direction of the sheriff." The union still represents the Fernandina Beach Police
Department. "I feel people elected me as sheriff to make decisions. I
hope this is saying we're treating the employees equally and fairly,"
Seagraves said. "The majority seem content we're treating them as equals
and managing them properly." Police Union
Cites "
Police pay is an issue across Sergeant Ewing, who has been an officer in The base pay for a patrolman before completing training
academy is a little over $8.00 an hour. Lieutenant Billodeaux
says, "You can go down to Mcdonald's and get
hired on as a night janitor at $8 an hour." He also says officers in other small communities within a 30
mile radius are paid much better. "You can go to five communities our
same size in population or less and make anywhere from two to five dollars an
hour starting pay." The city of Mayor Terry Duhon says, "If you wanna work here, you have to be willing to accept lower
pay." Since Mayor Duhon has been in office
he says police have received raises. Mayor Duhon
says, "I've been the mayor since October of 2003 and since that time i've gone through two different budget periods and in that
period of time we've given a 26 percent increase." Officer Priscilla wise says there are other ways for policemen
to make more money. She says, "Would everybody here like a raise yeah.I'm sure they would but there's other ways that they
could uh. They could work overtime and increase their pay." But some officers say it's still not enough. Now the
Association of Jennings Police plan to meet this Thursday to discuss police
pay issues. This meeting will be open to all
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