City
of
And
Seattle
Police Officer’s Guild
Interest
Arbitration
Arbitrator: William L. Corbett
Date
Issued:
Arbitrator:
Corbett; William L.
Case #: 10630-I-93-00228
Employer:
City of
Date Issued:
BEFORE WILLIAM L. CORBETT,
NEUTRAL ARBITRATOR
SGT. E. STRIEDINGER, PARTISAN
ARBITRATOR
FRED C. TREADWELL, PARTISAN
ARBITRATOR
IN THE MATTER OF ARBITRATION ]
BETWEEN: ] CASE
NO. 10630-I-93-228
] AAA CASE NO. 75 390 00015 94
AND ] INTEREST
ARBITRATION
CITY OF
Appearances:
For the Guild:
Will Aitchison, Esq.
Labor Representative
For the City:
Mark H. Sidran
Leigh Ann Tift
10th Floor,
600
The interest arbitration was held on July 25, 26 and
27, 1994, in
Neutral
Arbitrator William L. Corbett; Partisan Arbitrator Sgt. E.
Striedinger;
and Partisan Arbitrator Fred C. Treadwell. The
parties
stipulated to the jurisdiction of the arbitrators,
presented
evidence, argument, and agreed to file post-hearing
briefs. Timely briefs were received from both
parties. Further,
the
parties agreed to extend the time period for completion of the
Decision beyond 60 days to
facilitate the arbitration panel's need
to
circulate and finalize its decision.
THE DECISION
I. BACKGROUND
During the negotiations for 1992-1995 collective bargaining
agreement,
the City of
Officer's Guild (Guild) were
able to reach agreement on all issues
except
one -- the City's proposal to civilianize certain positions
currently
filled by sworn officers. Rather than
delay implemen-
tation of the entire contract, the parties agreed
that the City
would
have the right to refer its civilianization proposal to
interest
arbitration while the remainder of the contract was to
take
effect.
The City has proposed a civilianization of fourteen
positions,
which are:
__________
Position Number
of Positions
Chief Dispatchers 6
Telephone Reporting Unit 4
School Crossing Guard Supervisor 1
Equipment Maintenance Officer 1
Facilities Sergeant 1
Media Relations 1
__________
City Drive Candidates Proposal Following a Study Conducted
by
the Office Of Management and Budget ("OMB") at the direction of
the
considered
"whether additional positions could be converted to
civilian
positions" by matching the duties performed by the
identified
sworn police officers against a set of criteria. If the
position
did not require the "training, experience, powers and
reporting
relationship of the uniformed officer," the position was
included
in the civilianization proposal. See,
Exhibit 4.
Seventeen positions were
initially identified by the OMB study.
See,
Exhibit 4. However, one of these
positions was abrogated in
the
police budget, and two of the positions were not within the
Guild's
jurisdiction. This
arbitration concerns the remaining
fourteen
Guild positions, which the OMB study concluded did not
require
training, experience and arrest powers of a sworn
police
officer. See, Exhibit 4.
II. ISSUE
The issue is whether the City has sustained the necessary
burden
of proof to change fourteen sworn officers positions to
civilian
positions.
III. POSITIONS OF THE PARTIES
A. Position of the City
The City argued that sworn police officers are not necessary
to
fill the fourteen positions at issue. It
claims that dedicating
sworn
police officers to these positions will not assure that its
personnel,
and limited resources, are put to the highest and best
use. The City justified its civilianization
proposal based on (1)
cost
savings; (2) comparability with similar jobs in similar west
coast
cities; and (3) creating a wider pool of applicants and
qualifications
from which to select candidates for the specific
positions.
1/ The
Guild challenged the City's projected cost
savings;
presented conflicting evidence on comparability; and
asserted
benefits of having sworn officers perform the jobs the
City sought to civilianize.
_____
1 The first two sentences of the City's
"Civilianization Study"
state:
This report deals with the possible civilianization of
certain sworn positions in the Seattle
Police Department.
Civilianization, in general, offers the prospect of several
benefits ranging from a reduction in
salary and training costs to
creation of a wider pool from which to
select new applicants.
_____
1. Cost
The City argued that its civilianization proposal would
save
approximately $200,000 in its first year, with continued,
lesser
savings thereafter. The City's $200,000
figure was based on
totaling
the current cost of having sworn officers perform the jobs
at
issue, and comparing the figure with the projected salaries for
civilian
employees performing the same functions.
The City's
figures
are:
__________
Proposed
Civilian
Function Sworn Title Cost Title Cost Savings
Facilities/ISD Sergeant $62,710 Mgmt. Sys. Analyst $50,033 $12,677
1st Watch Dispatcher Officer $49,955 Dispatcher III $45,190 $4,765
1st Watch Dispatcher Officer $57,954 Dispatcher III $45,190 $12,764
2nd Watch Dispatcher Officer $57,899 Dispatcher III $45,190 $12,709
2nd Watch Dispatcher Officer $57,899 Dispatcher III $45,190 $12,709
3rd Watch Dispatcher Officer $57,899 Dispatcher III $45,190 $12,709
3rd Watch Dispatcher Officer $57,954 Dispatcher III $45,190 $12,764
Comm
OPS Dispatcher $57,003 Radio
Com. $46,724 $10,279
Specialist
TRU Dispatcher $57,003 Dispatcher
I $35,966 $21,037
TRU Officer $55,570 Dispatcher
I $35,966 $19,604
TRU Officer $47,585 Dispatcher
I $35,966 $11,619
TRU Officer $55,328 Dispatcher
I $35,966 $19,362
Media
Relations Officer $55,328 Publ. Rel. Spec. $43,754 $11,574
Crossing Guard Supr. Officer $55,569 Crossing Guard $29,234 $26,335
Supr.
TOTAL $785,656 $584,749 200,907 2
_____
2 At the hearing the City revised its
estimated savings figure
to $210,732.
__________
2. Comparability
The parties have long used seven West Coast cities for
the
purpose of determining comparability with respect to wages,
terms
and conditions of employment. The cities
are: Long
Beach,
and
cities
to determine whether each city had a job comparable to
each
of the specific positions the City sought to civilianize,
and
if so, whether the position was held by a sworn officer or
civilian. The City's survey indicated the following:
__________
CITY POSITION
Chief Telephone School Equipment Facilities Media
Dispatcher Reporting Crossing Maintenance Sergeant Relations
Unit Guard Officer
Supervisor
&
1 sworn
&
sworn
&
1 sworn
_____
3 These new positions were changed from sworn
to civilian in 1991
when a new unit was created.
4 Duties are covered as components of several
civilian jobs.
5 These function are spread out over a number
of sworn and
civilian jobs.
6 This job was changed from sworn to civilian
in 1989 for
financial reasons.
7 These functions are performed by a variety
of sworn and
civilian jobs.
8 This job was changed from sworn to civilian
in June 1989 for
financial, stability, and expertise
reasons.
9 All positions were eliminated due to lack
of funding;
however, they were civilian when they
existed.
__________
B. Position of the Guild.
The Guild Argued that the City failed to establish the
necessary
proof to civilianize the fourteen position.
It argued
the
City did not adequately present and support its proposal
at
the bargaining table; that its proposal would not result in
cost-saving;
that the proposal was not consistent with
civilianization
efforts when compared to other police departments
in
the
City's proposal will have a detrimental impact on performance
of
the respective positions.
1. Cost
The Guild disputed the City's figures. It argued that
civilianization
would increase the City's annual costs by
approximately
$48,000. The Guild's figures indicate:
__________
Function Sworn Title Cost Civilian
Title Cost
Facilities/ISD
10 Sergeant 62,710 Man. Sys.Analyst 114,815
1st Watch Dispatcher Officer 49,955 Dispatcher IV 11 58,055
1st Watch --- Officer 57,954 Dispatcher IV 58,055
Dispatcher
2nd Watch Dispatcher Officer 57,899 Dispatcher IV 58,005
2nd Watch Dispatcher Officer 57,899 Dispatcher IV 58,005
3rd Watch Dispatcher Officer 57,899 Dispatcher IV 58,005
3rd Watch Dispatcher Officer 57,954 Dispatcher IV 58,005
Comm
Ops Dispatcher 57,003 Comm. Spec. 12 61,314
TRU Dispatcher 57,003 Dispatcher III 51,834
TRU Officer 55,570 Dispatcher
III 51,834
TRU Officer 47,585 Dispatcher
III 51,834
TRU Officer 55,328 Dispatcher
III 51,834
Media
Relations Officer 55,328 Sr.Pub.Re.
Spec 13 58,039
Crossing
Guard Super. Officer 55,569 School C.G. Sup. 14 44,178
TOTAL 834,001
TOTAL SAVINGS (48,355)
_____
10 As the testimony at the hearing established,
the incumbent
in this position is currently
performing the equivalent of 2
separate jobs; the City's Exhibit 10
presumed that the replacement
for the officer will only perform 1 of
those jobs. Table 2 reflects
the replacement of the sworn position
with two non-sworn positions.
11 The figures in Table 2 reflected 12%
increase over the wages
paid Dispatcher III's
-- the same differential as between the
positions of Dispatcher II and
III. The costs for Dispatcher IV are
understated, for shift differential is
not included in the
calculation of the Dispatcher wages.
12 Table 2 reflects a $5,000 greater salary
than that reflected
on Exhibit 10. The figures in Table 2 are understated,
before they
ignore the fact that the City will
likely need to hire two civilians to
perform the job.
13 Table 2 presumes that the police department
is likely to be
a "controversial" city
agency.
14 Table 2 reflects the fact that 20% of
crossing guard duties
will have to be performed by a sworn
officer.
__________
2. Comparability
The Guild conducted its own survey and its results, in
part,
conflicted with those of the City. The
Guild's survey was
conducted
by a Guild member who contacted Guild counterparts, in
writing,
at each of the comparable cities, then followed up with
telephone
calls to presidents and vice presidents of each
organization
and with individual officers in the departments.
The results of the Guild's
survey were:
__________
CITY POSITION
School
Telephone Crossing Equipment
Chief Reporting Guard Maintenance Facilities Media
Dispatcher Unit Supervisor Officer Sergeant Relations
& &
1
sworn 1
swn.
&
sworn
20
&
sworn
21
&
sworn
&
sworn
23
&
sworn
24
_____
15 A Lieutenant in the traffic detail, along
with other
responsibilities, handles supervision
of school crossing guards.
16 Civilians' work is limited to misdemeanors.
17 Sworn officers were assigned a number of
duties at schools
and one of those duties involved the
supervision of crossing
guards.
18 By contract the position will be sworn
beginning January
1995.
19 These function are spread out over number of
sworn and
civilian jobs.
20 There are six permanent sworn
positions. They use light-duty
personnel to fill those positions;
however, they are permanent and
budgeted positions.
21 Because of staffing problems the department
backfilled the
positions with sworn light-duty
officers. The sworn officers are
"quasi-permanent" positions;
however, there is always one sworn
officer in the TRU Unit. The permanent sworn officer is a
Facilitator, and is used whenever a citizen wants to speak
within
sworn officer.
22 There are two officers in the traffic detail
that have been
assigned to oversee the crossing
guards as part of their regular
assignment.
23 The positions are civilian but the
department fills these
positions with officers who are on
light-duty, and because there is
a current shortage of civilian
personnel they are backfilling with
sworn officers.
24 Sworn officers when on light-duty.
__________
The Guild also argued that the City's civilianization effort
have
been extensive and that there was no need for any further
efforts. The Guild cited its study to the effect that
the City's
civilianization
of the Police Department was the sixth highest in
the
State of
3. Benefit Obtained By
Using Sworn Officers
The Guild argued that for each of the fourteen
positions
the city sought to civilianize, there were substantial
benefits
in retaining a sworn officer to perform those functions.
IV. CRITERIA TO BE USED IN RESOLVING THE ISSUE AND
ALLOCATING BURDEN OF PROOF
A. Statutory Criteria
The Revised Codes of Washington (RCW) § 41.56.460 provides
the
criteria that must be considered by the panel in making an
award. For purposes of this arbitration, the
pertinent criteria
listed
in RCW § 41.56.460 are: the constitutional and statutory
authority
of the employer; the stipulations of the parties; the
wages,
hours and working conditions of comparable employer; and
"such
other factors ... which are normally and traditionally
taken
into consideration in the determination of wages, hours and
conditions
of employment."
B. Interest Arbitration
and the Burden of Proof
In an interest arbitration the decisionmaker(s) must not
depart
from the status quo unless the proponent of change
establishes
that its proposal: (1) was initially presented at the
bargaining
table; and (2) considering all the evidence, is
preferable
to the status quo.
Because interest arbitration is nothing more than an
extension
of the bargaining process, the proponent of change must
establish
that its proposal was presented at the bargaining table
and
that it was rejected. Thus, the party
making a case in
interest
arbitration initially must make its case during the
bargaining
process. Without such a threshold
showing,
negotiations
would lose a considerable amount of their purpose.
Additionally, in interest arbitration, the party requesting
a
change in the status quo has the burden of establishing: (1)
the
need or desirability for change; and (2) that the proposed
changes
are practical and reasonable in the absolute and in
relation
to the interests of the parties. Thus,
the party
proposing a
change must "provide evidence of a demonstrable need"
for
the change, City of Pullman and the Pullman Police Officers
Guild, PERC Case No.
9223-I-93-201 (Axon, 1991); and that its
"proposal
is not only desirable but practical and necessary."
City of Kennewick and the
Kennewick Police Officers Benefit
Assoc.,
PCRC Case No. 5380-I-84-123 (LaCugna, 1984). See also
Elkouri and Elkouri,
How Arbitration Works, p. 817, 4th Ed., 1985.
The concept of
"necessity," must be tempered to reflect the
reality
that no one set of "terms and conditions of employment"
may
generally be described as "necessary," beyond that they are
desirable,
practical and reasonable in the absolute and given the
interests
and needs of the parties. At a minimum,
"[i]f the
arguments
offered in support of the change do not clearly out
weigh
arguments in favor of the status quo then the status quo
should
be maintained." City of Bellevue
and Bellevue
Firefighters Local 1604, PERC
Case No. 6811-I-87-162, AAA case
No.
75 390 0125 87 (Gaunt, 1988).
Here the City has the burden to demonstrate that it offered
its
civilianization proposal to the Guild at the bargaining table
and
provided a justification for its proposal that is not unlike
the
justification was offered that interest arbitration.
Second, the City must
establish that its proposal is desirable,
practical
and reasonable in the absolute and when considering the
interests
of the parties. With regard to this
latter burden, the
City must demonstrate that its
proposal will result in
significant
cost savings; that is civilianization efforts are
supported
by other comparable jurisdictions; and that having
civilians
perform the specific jobs in question is desirable,
practical
and reasonable.
V. DISCUSSION
A. Whether the City
Adequately Presented Its Proposal
at the Bargaining Table
The City must establish that it adequately presented its
proposal
to the Guild at the bargaining table.
The Guild
asserted
that the City failed to prove that it provided adequate
justification
for its civilianization proposal during the
negotiations,
and should not be allowed to do so in interest
arbitration.
Specifically, the Guild argued:
At the hearing, the City acknowledged that,
contrasted
with the 3.5 days of the
arbitration hearing, the
complete discussion of the
civilianization issue in
bargaining consumed only half a
day. The City's lead
negotiator, Lizanne
Lyons, testified that the entirety
City's presentation on civilianization was made
by Claire McKechnie,
a representative from the City's
Office of Management and Budget. Ms. McKechnie had
prepared a civilianization study
for the City which was
given to the Guild during Ms. McKechnie's presentation,
and which later became Exhibit 4
in these proceedings.
As Ms. Lyons acknowledged, and as Verner O'Quin, the
Guild's Treasurer, stated even more forcefully, the
Guild believes that Ms. McKechnie's
civilianization
presentation not only was
woefully inadequate to
justify the City's proposal, but
contained significant
data errors. ...
Not only was Ms. McKechnie's
presentation during
bargaining unconvincing to the
Guild, it appears to
have been unconvincing to even
the City's negotiators.
As Ms. Lyons fairly dramatically testified, while the
City did not have "serious" reservations about
"all" of
Ms. McKechnie's numbers, Ms. McKechnie's presentation
left the city "looking at
how to reconcile some
differences in the
numbers."
The position of the Guild, in part, is supported by the
evidence. Indeed, when Ms. Lyons was asked by the
Guild's
counsel:
" Is it fair to say that those reservations were shared,
at
least in part, by members of the City's negotiating team at
the
conclusion of the presentation?"
She responded:
Well, I would say there were some questions regarding
Claire McKechnie's numbers and
some numbers generated
by Suzanne Crane from the City
Council's staff and
reconciling the two. I might not say it quite as
broadly as you did in terms of
serious reservations
about all of Claire's
numbers. We were looking at how
to reconcile some differences in
the numbers.
Tr.
267-68.
While there may have been some question regarding
McKechnie's
numbers -- and a clear difference between Ms.
McKechnie's
numbers and those of Suzanne Crane, the numbers
supplied
by the City to the Guild indicated that civilianization
of
the positions in question would result in the cost savings.
Moreover, while the cost
savings figures the City attributed to
civilianization
may not have been free from error, the figures
represented a
reasonable effort project personnel costs under
it's
proposal. As discussed below, the City's
figures do
represent a
savings.
In total, the evidence supports conclusion that the City
offerred its civilianization proposal to the Guild
at the
bargaining
table and provided a justification for its proposal
that
is not unlike the justification was offerred at the
arbitration
hearing.
B. The Chief Dispatchers
The evidence supports the conclusion that civilians can
adequately perform
the job function of Chief Dispatcher; that
employing
civilians would cost less than sworn officers; and that
the
use of civilian to perform this job is consistent with the
situation
in comparable jurisdictions.
1. Civilians Adequately
Performed the
Position of Chief Dispatcher
The Chief Dispatcher is the lead dispatcher for the
police
radio dispatch function in the Communications Center.
Chief Dispatchers that job
title of six sworn police officers
and
it is also used to refer to the function of lead dispatcher-a
function
that can be performed by civilian or sworn employees.
Applying OMB criteria, the
position of Chief Dispatcher does
not
require arrest powers, does not require paramilitary chain of
command,
does not require patrol experience, and is not reserved,
as a
matter of law, for sworn officers.
At the present time, civilian employees do the work of Chief
Dispatcher. The Director of the
Communications Center, Lt.
Tibbs,
testified that there was no instance where the performance
of a
civilian Chief Dispatcher was qualitatively or
quantitatively
less than the performance of a sworn Chief
Dispatcher.
Both Mr. Lawson and Director Tibbs
explained that the skills
require
of a police officer and those required to perform the
position
of Chief Dispatcher are different. Mr.
Lawson testified
that a
specific set of computer skills is required for the
computer
aided dispatch system, and that dispatching is a much
different
experience than a police officer's response to a call
for
assistance. Director Tibbs
explained that civilian
dispatchers
are given a modified Perfex test to assess aptitude
for
the dispatching job. Director Tibbs testified that a patrol
officer
would not know how to operate as a dispatcher without
training,
and the not all patrol officers have an aptitude for
dispatching. This testimony was echoed by the Guild
President,
Mr. Jakobsen,
who said, the true to sworn Chief Dispatchers
far
"far better dispatchers than I believe that they were
policeman,
if I wanted to weigh it, out on the street."
2. Civilian Chief
Dispatchers Would Cost the
City Less Than Sworn Officers
The City estimated that employing civilians, rather than
sworn
officers, to perform the work of the Chief Dispatcher would
result
in annual savings in salaries of approximately $68,000.
The projected savings were
determined by comparing the current
salaries
of the six sworn officers who currently hold the
positions
of Chief Dispatcher and comparing them with the salary
of
the Civilian Dispatcher III, Step 1. The
City determined that
the
appropriate classification was a Dispatcher III after
reviewing
the position description for the Chief Dispatcher
position
and determining a civilian classification that
corresponds
to these duties. This process was
performed by a
City
classification specialists. The City determined that the
classification
should be at Step 1. It is undisputed
that
Seattle Municipal Code
requires that a newly hired person for a
civilian
civil service position must start at the first step of
the
salary range.
The Guild disputes the City's determination that
Dispatcher III, Step 1, is the
correct civilian classification.
Alternatively, it argues that
if the Dispatcher III classifica-
tion is used the appropriate step is Step 4, or
that the City
should establish
a new classification, Dispatcher IV. If
either
these
assumptions are made, there would be little or no salary
savings
in changing the position from sworn to civilian.
The Guild's position with regard to using a Dispatcher, Step
4, is based on the assumption
that the City will promote current
civilian
employees from the position of Dispatcher III.
If the
City promotes a Dispatcher II
to a new Dispatcher III position,
the
employer will not begin is a Dispatcher III, Step 1. The
City's own witness testified
that:
... if you're already an
existing City employee and
you transfer from one job title
to another job title,
you would remain in the same
step you were
currently at. If you were promoted into a position
from a lower level into a higher-level
position, then
you would be placed at a salary
step that would be
equal to at least [four percent]
4% salary increase.
Tr.
117, 298.
The President of the Seattle Police Dispatchers' Guild, the
organization
that represents the civilian Dispatchers, testified
that
when a Dispatcher II, Step 5, is promoted to a Dispatcher
III, the employee would be
placed at Step IV as a Dispatcher III.
Tr. 77-78. He also testified that the last time the
Dispatcher
III test was administered to
Dispatcher IIs for promotion, all or
most
all of them were Dispatcher II, Step 5.
Accordingly, the
Guild argues that if the sworn
Chief Dispatcher position was
civilianize,
the new positions would probably be staffed by
former
Dispatcher IIs at Step 5. Consequently, in their new
positions
as Dispatchers IIIs they would not be a Step 1 on the
pay
scale. If it is assumed the civilian
Dispatcher IIs will
fill
the new Dispatcher III positions, the City's figures
overstate
the savings he can expect by converting from sworn to
civilian
Chief Dispatchers. The actual savings
will be
substantially
less. 25
_____
25 A $26,000 savings may be a more realistic
figure, assuming
Dispatcher III, Step 4 will earn approximately 16% more than
a Dispatcher III, Step 1.
_____
In support of its alternative position, the Guild asserts
that
the City will use a new civilian Dispatcher IV
classification. The position of the Dispatcher IV is based on
the
assumption
that the City will develop a new higher classification
for
this newly suggested civilian position.
However, the
evidence
does not support the Guild's position that the City will
adopted
classification for the civilian Chief Dispatchers.
While the Dispatcher's Guild
would like the City to create a new
Dispatcher IV position for Civilian
Chief Dispatchers, and likely
will
carry such a proposal to the bargaining table, there is no
evidence
that the City will agree to such a proposal.
Additionally, if the City
agreed to such a proposal the increase
in
salary may not be the twelve percent (12%) increase that the
Guild
projects. 26
_____
26 This conclusion is based on the fact that
those employees
moving into the Dispatcher IV
positions were probably Dispatcher
IIIs with a number of steps.
When the advanced to the Dispatcher IVs
they will receive an approximate four
percent (4%) raise. Tr. 117,
298.
_____
Apart from salary savings, if any, the City will experience
cost
reductions, thus savings, by civilianizing the Chief
Dispatcher
positions. The
City cited the substantial expense,
approximately
$36,000, in training a sworn officer compared to
the
training necessary for a civilian to perform the function.
The City also cited the
equipment cost of a sworn officer,
approximately
$1,560. Additionally, because of the
differences
in
scheduling work for sworn officers and civilians, there have
been
shifts in the Communication Division, such that it is "top
heavy"
with Chief Dispatchers. The different
scheduling,
necessitated
because of the two different classifications,
occasionally
has resulted in two sworn Chief Dispatchers and a
civilian
Dispatcher III on the same shift. This
is an
unnecessary
and costly consequence of the dual system.
While none
Guild cited that fact that
civilians earn "shift differential"
which
is not paid sworn officers, the evidence is clear that the
City will experience a cost
savings by using civilians as Chief
Dispatchers.
3. Comparability
It is undisputed that one considering the six west
coast
cities comparable to Seattle no city uses sworn officers as
Dispatchers.
4. Other Factors that
Impact Whether the
Position Should be Civilian or
Sworn
The Guild argues that apart from the fact that the
civilians
can perform the functions of Chief Dispatcher at the
savings
to the City, and that no other comparable cities use
sworn
officers, there is very real value in having sworn officers
perform
these positions. The Guild argues that
there is a
significant
value in having a police officer with "street
experience"
in the position; that in extremely critical
situations,
sworn officers perform exceptionally under the
highest
stress of the moment; there is a value in having a mix of
sworn
and non-sworn personnel in the dispatch center; and other
benefits
ranging from security concerns to the intimate knowledge
of
the physical environs of Seattle possessed by sworn officers.
There's no question of sworn offerers
bring an "added
value"
to the position of Chief Dispatcher.
Police Chief Stamper
testified
that a sworn officer's experience is valuable in
Dispatch,
but not essential. In
conclusion, the evidence
supports
the City's position to civilianize the position of Chief
Dispatcher because of the
added costs of using sworn officers; the
fact
other comparable jurisdictions use sworn officers; and that
sworn
officer training and experience is not essential for that
position. However, given the fact that six sworn
officers are
effected
by changing the position from sworn to civilian, the
City must effectuate this
change pursuant to a transition plan.
C. Telephone Reporting
Unit
The Telephone Reporting Unit (TRU) has four sworn officers
that
the City seeks to civilianize. The sworn
officers in TRU
the
police reports over the telephone in lieu of dispatching a
patrol
unit. This same function is performed by
civilian
Dispatcher Is;
the only distinction being the amount of reported
damage. As Director Tibbs
explained, one call that reports
property
damage of $299 dollars would be taken by a civilian,
another,
reporting identical damage, except estimating that
damage
at $301, would be taken by a police officer and TRU.
However, all follow-up
reports, whether they involve more than
$300 damage or suspect
identification, are taken by civilians.
The duties of the civilian Dispatcher I and the TRU officer
are
similar. This information is recorded by
both employees
when
taking a telephone report. If a call is
answered by either
a
civilian dispatcher sworn officer in TRU, and there is the
possibility
of apprehension of the suspect, the call is immediately
routed
to a patrol unit.
1. Cost
The City estimated that replacing the sworn officers
with
civilians would save approximately $71,500 annually. The
City's estimate was based on
replacing sworn officers with
civilian
Dispatcher Is. Alternatively, the Guild
estimated that
the
average savings would be approximately $8,000.
The Guild's
estimate
was based on the assumption that the City would actually
use
Dispatcher IIIs to replace the sworn officers. As with the
Guild's assumption that the
City would create a new position of
Dispatcher IV to replace the
sworn Chief Dispatchers, the City
indicated
that have no plans to use Dispatcher IIIs to replace
the
current Dispatchers who currently perform telephone
reporting. Accordingly, the evidence supports the
conclusion
that
shifting from sworn officers to an all civilian force will
result
in substantial cost savings.
2. Comparability
The City's survey revealed that of the seven comparable
cities
two cities used civilians; two cities used both civilian
and
sworn; two cities used sworn; and in one City there was no
match. Alternatively, the Guild's survey revealed
only one City
that
used civilians, and that the remaining cities used a
combination
of civilians and sworn officers. The
parties agree
that
Long Beach uses a civilian with one sworn officer. While
the
City listed Oakland with a sworn force, the Guild found both
civilians
and sworn officers. The City lists
Portland and
Sacramento with a wholly
civilian force, whereas the Guild found
that
the cities use sworn officers on "like duty," and that
Sacramento has one sworn
officer at TRU to serve as a
"Facilitator"
for citizens who want to speak with an officer.
The parties agree that San
Diego uses both sworn and civilians.
The City found "no
match" in San Francisco, whereas the Guild
determined
that it used both sworn and civilians.
The sworn
officers
were only schedule and on "light duty," or when there
was a
shortage of civilians. The City listed
San Jose as using
sworn
officers; whereas, the Guild determined that civilians do
the
work and sworn officers only work when on "light duty." The
differences
between the parties are not a great. It
is clear
the
most of the comparable cities use a mix of civilians and
sworn
officers in TRU. Often the sworn
officers are used only
when
on "light-duty." However, in
performed
by sworn officers, and in
one
sworn officer is permanently in the unit.
Thus, the evidence is clear that most comparable cities use
a
combination of civilians and sworn officers in TRU, and out of
the
cities that use sworn officers, they are used primarily foreign
"light
duty," 27 or as in
complement
of sworn officers are used to take calls from citizens
who
want to speak with a sworn officer. The
City also provides
"light
duty" work for sworn officers elsewhere in the department.
_____
27 It is clear that the City is not legally
bound to provide
such "light duty" positions
for sworn officers in TRU.
_____
There is no absolute need for sworn officers in TRU because
when a
citizen wants to speak with a sworn officer, an officer is
dispatched. While it might be cheaper to have a
complement of
sworn
officers in TRU to speak with citizens who want to talk to
an
officer, the dispatch of sworn officers appears to satisfy
citizen
needs and assures effective police work.
Unless the City
discontinue
such practice of dispatching a sworn officer when a
citizen
requests to speak with an Officer, the practice in
comparable
jurisdictions does not justify the permanent
assignment
four sworn officers to TRU. However, the
elimination
of sworn officers in the TRU will increase the work
load
of other sworn officers. This
consideration is discussed
below.
3. Other Considerations
Because TRU officers deal directly with citizens who
want
to speak with a police officer, this activity saves the City
money
that would otherwise be spent dispatching sworn officers to
the
citizens' residence or place of business.
The City has
recognized
that this savings, in large part, justifies the unit.
In its 1991 Position
Description Questionnaire for the TRU
position
the Department stated:
If the TRU Unit were eliminated, the current average
workload of 11,760
calls/investigations now handled
would be dispatched to Patrol
Units, which would likely
result in increased call waiting
backlogs, longer
response times, and increased
citizen frustrations. The
types of calls being handled by
TRU Officers are
processed in 10 to 20 minutes
with complete citizen
satisfaction. The dispatch of a Patrol Unit, including
travel time, investigations and
reporting would
probably average 30 minutes to
one hour. Since TRU-
handled calls are police
investigations, they cannot be
transferred to civilian staff,
even if such staff were
available. The 1989 Police Management Study applauds
the TRU Unit by saying
"This is a very efficient
utilization of sworn
personnel."
Exhibit 7D at 7.12.
Eliminating sworn officers from performing this communi-
cation function would impose an appreciable
economic cost on the
Department. Apparently the City did not consider this
increased
cost
in its calculation of the financial implication of
eliminating
TRU. Thus, while the evidence
demonstrates a
salary
cost savings by replacing the sworn officers with
civilians,
the City did not consider the resulting cost increase
of
having street officers dispatched to interview civilians.
Therefore,
the actual cost savings and clearly defined.
Additionally, apart from cost, the evidence supports the
conclusion
that there will be a reduced effectiveness of the
Department's
telephone reporting function. There was
considerable
evidence that TRU officers' street law experience
was a
considerable asset to their functioning as TRU officers.
The TRU officers'
investigatory training and street experience
was
frequently called upon to flesh out telephone reports.
They also brought their
formidable knowledge of the City's
geography
to bear in handling calls. While
retaining sworn
officers
as Chief Dispatchers had particular value, it was less
clear
whether eliminating sworn officers in TRU would result in
substantial
cost savings to counterbalance the loss of their
services. Accordingly, it is concluded that the
evidence does
not
support the City's position regarding elimination of the
four
TRU positions.
D. School Crossing Guard
Supervisor
The school Crossing guard supervisor oversees part-time
civilian
school crossing guards. Approximately,
twenty percent
(20%) of the supervisor's time
is spent writing traffic tickets.
The City seeks to civilianize
this position.
Applying the OMB criteria, except for the time writing
tickets,
position does not require arrest powers, does not
need
to maintain the paramilitary chain of command, and does not
require
patrol experience. The twenty percent
(20%) of the
employee's
time that is spent writing traffic tickets will be
retained
as Guild work and absorbed by other traffic or patrol
officers.
1. Cost Savings
The City plans on replacing the sworn officer with a
Crossing
Guard Supervisor at a cost savings of $26,335. The
Guild argued that the City's
estimate accounted for only eighty
percent
(80%) of the position, the crossing guard duties, but did
not
account for the twenty percent (20%) spent writing tickets.
The Guild factored in the
additional twenty percent (20%) and
concluded
that the actual savings would be approximately $11,000.
Clearly the bulk of the position involves duties that do
not
require a sworn officer. The City should
not have to pay in
excess
of $26,000 for twenty percent (20%) of the sworn officer's
time
for ticket writing. It is reasonable for
the City to
spread
that small amount of time throughout the Department,
possibly
with the impact that some small percentage of tickets
won't
be written.
2. Comparability
The City's survey indicated that school crossing guard
supervisors
in Long Beach and Oakland were civilian, that the
position
was staffed by a sworn officer in San Jose, and that the
remaining
jurisdictions did not staff the position as a full-time
position.
The Guild's survey indicated that a job similar to the
school
crossing guard job was performed in Oakland, Long Beach,
however,
that in
lieutenant
who is in the traffic detail who handles supervision
of
crossing guards as part of this is duties.
The Guild's
witness
agreed that it was difficult to analogize the school
crossing
guard job in
the
position in
primary
purpose of school crossing guard supervision.
He
admitted
that had he asked these jurisdictions whether they have a
position
created and funded to perform only school crossing guard
supervision,
he would "possibly" have received very different
answers.
The better evidence is that few jurisdictions have sworn
officers
primarily devoted to supervising civilian school
crossing
guards.
3. Other Factors
Guild emphasized that traffic enforcement (ticket
writing)
was imperative for the position.
Additionally, the
Guild argued that having an
experienced sworn police officer who
trained
adult school crossing guards in recognizing traffic
hazards
was critical.
The evidence does not support the conclusion that ticket
writing
authority is necessary for the position.
Most all
traffic
violations that occur school crossings will not begin
the
presence of the sworn officer. Nor, is
it clear that the few
tickets
that are written, approximately two a month, are
significant
in assuring safety. Nor, does the
evidence support
the
conclusion that only a sworn officer may properly train adult
school
crossing guards about traffic hazards or proper avoidance
techniques.
In total, the evidence supports the conclusion that the City
will
occur significant cost savings with no appreciable law City
efficiency
or safety if it replaces sworn officers with civilians
disposition.
E. Equipment Maintenance
Officer
There is no serious dispute as to whether the job of
Equipment Maintenance Officer
("EMO") can be performed by A.
civilians. Even the incumbent, Officer Waltier, admits that he is
mainly a
software systems manager. These duties
are regularly
performed
by civilians. Mr. Waltier
admitted that it was not
necessary
to have a law enforcement background in order to do his
job. His only concern was his belief that the City
would have to
pay a
civilian considerably more than he was paid to perform that
job. The position was staff previously by a civilian,
and the
classification
was changed to sworn because the City have
difficulty
retaining civilians in the position because of its low
pay.
1. Cost Savings
The City estimated position could be filled with a
civilian
Radio Communication Specialist at the savings of $10,279
per
year. The Guild estimates that there
will be no cost
savings,
and that the City will actually have to pay a civilian
considerably
more than it is currently paying the sworn officer.
The Guild notes that
previously when the position was staffed by
a
civilian the City could not retain qualified persons because
there
are always lured away for higher salaries.
It is difficult to conclude that the City can reap a salary
savings
in this position. It may have to pay a
civilian
approximately
what it is currently paying the sworn officer.
However, conversion from sworn
officer to a civilian would allow
the
City to save the cost associated with training a sworn
officer
for a position that does not require law enforcement
training. That training costs the City between $35,000
and
$37,000. Additionally, the City will not be spending
the funds
required
to equip a sworn officer, approximate $1,560.
Thus,
even
if there is no salary savings, the City will not be
expending a
considerable amount of money to train and equip a
sworn
officer for a task that day-to-day he or she is not called
upon
to perform.
2. Comparability
The City's summary demonstrated that the equipment
maintenance
job is staffed by civilians in every comparable
jurisdiction of
San Jose, where there is one civilian and one
sworn
officer who perform these duties. The Guild's survey
indicated
that San Jose employs only civilians in the position.
3. Other factors
The City argued that its personnel should be put to
their
highest and best use. It is undisputed
that the sworn
officer
performing equipment maintenance is not specifically
called
upon to use his police officer training, equipment, and
expertise
in the performance of the equipment maintenance job.
While his police training and
experience is "value added" for the
position,
it is not necessary for performance of the position.
It is not sound policy, both
economically and practically to
require
training that is not necessary for successful performance
of
that position.
In total the evidence supports position of the City for
the
civilianization of disposition.
F. Facilities Sergeant
The Facilities Sergeant position is currently filled by one
sworn
officer who actually performs two separate jobs. The
individual
performs all of the duties of the Facility Sergeant
job
and serves as the Aid to the Chief. When
serving as the
Facility Sergeant, the
incumbent acts as the Department's
facilities
coordinator by coordinating and identifying general
maintenance
needs; prioritizing requests for services; performing
supervisory
and administrative duties; acts as the Department's
telephone
coordinator; and monitors any new construction or
alteration
to existing facilities. The position
does not require
police
training or patrol experience.
The City's plan to civilianize the Facilities Sergeant
position
assumes that a portion of incumbent's time devoted to
serving
as Aid to Chief Brasfield would continue with the
incumbent,
or be reassigned to another sworn officer.
1. Cost Savings
The City civilianization plan calls for replacing the
Facilities
Sergeant with a civilian Management Systems Analyst.
The City estimates an annual
salary savings of $12,677. This
estimated
savings does not account for the portion of the
position
designated as "Aid to the Chief" that must be assigned
to
sworn officer.
The Guild's estimated cost of civilianizing the position
attempts
to account for the "Aid" portion of the position. In
doing
so, estimates that it will actually cost the City more
money
(an increase from approximately $62,000 to approximately
$115,000). While the Guild correctly notes that the
City's cost
estimates
do not account for the entire cost of civilianizing that
Facilities Sergeant position, the Guild's estimate appears to
overstate
the cost. The City should have accounted
for the "Aid"
portion
of the position, but the evidence does not support the
conclusion
that the cost attributed to the position will increase
by
approximately $50,000. There was no
evidence regarding the
percentage
of the incumbent's time spent on the portion of the
position
that the City seeks to civilianize, and that portion of
position
that is "Aid" to the Chief.
2. Comparability
The City study indicated that of the seven comparable
cities,
five have a sworn officer in the position of Facilities
Sergeant; and in the remaining
two cities, there was "no match."
The evidence was that in the
two cities where there was no direct
match
the functions were spread over a number of sworn and
civilian
jobs. The Guild did not offer any
evidence that their
study
was inconsistent with that of the City.
3. Other factors
The evidence supports the conclusion that currently the
Department anticipates a
substantial multi-year building plan.
Chief Stamper testified that
there are two Facilities jobs; one
would
intend to the "day-to-day" activities, whereas the other
will
require someone with "project management" experience to
handle
needs assessment, site selection, financing and
construction
of the buildings. This latter position
me require
expertise
from outside the Department. However,
the Chief stated
the
plans are currently "in a state of flux."
Given the fact that a sworn officer will apparently continued
to
serve as Aid to Chief Brasfield (thus clouding the
accurate
projection
of cost savings -- if any); that the needs and direction
the
Department potentially require two "facilities" persons;
and
that comparable jurisdictions continue to rely on sworn
officers
in handling "facilities," the evidence does not support
the
City's position regarding civilianization of the Facilities
Sergeant
position.
G. Media Relations
Currently, the Department's media relations are handled by a
sworn
officer. The officer relays information
from crime scene
investigators
to the news media and responds to questions from
the
media related to police reports. As such, the sworn officer
has
no role in performing criminal investigations.
The City
proposes
having a civilian perform these functions.
The OMB report noted: "It is possible that some crime
scene
training
would have to be provided to a civilian Public
Information Officer ... to
accomplish the duties ... in media
relations." The report concluded that the job did not
required
sworn
personnel. In addition to media
relations, the incumbent
has
been assigned to investigate civil claims that were filed
against
the City.
1. Cost Savings
The City estimates that they would be an annual
savings
of approximately $11,500 by having a civilian "Public
Relations Specialist" perform media relations for the Department.
The Guild argued that
civilianizing media relations would not
result
in savings, but actually cost more for the City. The
Guild determined that the
position would call for a "Senior
Public Relations
Specialist," which could cost the Department
approximately
$3,000 more than the current sworn officer.
The
City's classification
specialists acknowledged that a "Public
Relations Specialist" is
designated for City agencies which are
not
deemed "controversial."
Whereas, the "Senior Public
Relations Specialist" is
designated for agencies that are
"controversial." Chief Stamper testified that he could think
of
no
City agency likely to be as "controversial" as the Police
Department. Thus, there is a legitimate question as to
whether
the
City properly determined the appropriate classification for
the
Department's media relations person, assuming that the
position
were civilianized.
Additionally, the evidence indicated that the current media
relations
officer was responsible for preparing the initial
investigatory
defense to approximately 350 to 400 claims a year
that
were filed against the Police Department.
There was no
evidence
that a civilian could properly perform this aspect of
the
current job. This work would have to be
assumed by other
sworn
officers, at a cost to the City.
In total, the evidence does not support the conclusion that
you'll
be cost savings by switching to a civilian.
2. Comparability
The City's study revealed that of the seven comparable
cities:
three cities use sworn officers; two cities used
civilians;
one City used one sworn and one civilian; and the
remaining
City had "no match." The
Guild's survey agreed with
that
of the City, except for the City's conclusion that one of
the
comparable jurisdictions had "no match." The Guild's
evidence
was that the jurisdiction was about to fill the position
with
the sworn officer. Thus, the evidence
was the most of the
comparable
jurisdiction used sworn officers.
3. Other Factors
Guild presented testimony from one of the leading
"consumers"
of the services of the Department's Media Relations
officer,
a long time Seattle police beat reporter. He testified
that a
sworn officer serving as media relations officer would
have a
higher degree of credibility over a civilian serving in
that
capacity. That reporter compared the
quality of information
the
media receives from the Police Department without coming
from
the Fire Department, where a civilian media relations person
is
employed. The reporter testified that
while the Fire
Department's media relations
person was competent, the quality of
information
would be better if it were coming from someone who
was
more familiar with fire fighting procedures and techniques.
He then analogized that
experience to the Police Department and
concluded
that is civilian media relations person would suffer
from
the same difficulty.
It is clear that the media frequently seeks information
about
crime scene, arrest procedures, the application of
criminal
laws, and other technical information that a civilian
would
have difficulty providing for would be unable to provide.
If the position were
civilianized, the City would select rate
civilian
with prior law enforcement experience or provide a non-
experienced
civilian with a high degree of police training.
However, it is clear that a
successful media relations person for
the
Department must be very technically knowledgeable. Given the
high
degree of training required of a media relations person; the
fact
that there appears to be no annual salary cost saving in
switching
to a civilian; and that the experience of comparable
jurisdictions
is mixed; the City has failed to make its burden of
proof
regarding civilianizing the Media Relations Officer.
H. Conclusion
The evidence supports the position of the City regarding the
civilianization
of the Chief Dispatcher positions, the School
Crossing Guard position, and the Equipment Maintenance position.
However, the evidence does not
support the City's position
regarding
the TRU positions, the Facilities Sergeant position for
the
Media Relations position.
AWARD
Of the fourteen positions under consideration, the City may
civilianized
only the Chief Dispatcher positions, the School
Crossing Guard Supervisor
position, and the Equipment Maintenance
position.28
_____
28 A transition plan shall be established to
effectuate the
orderly change from sworn to civilian
Chief Dispatchers.
/s/
WILLIAM L. CORBETT, NEUTRAL
DATED: 1/3/95
SGT. E. STRIEDINGER, PARTISAN
DATED: 12-19-94
FRED C. TREADWELL, PARTISAN
DATED: 12/22/94