2002-03 AMENDING CITY CODE - CHAPTER 7 - OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES GENERALLY

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• DECATUR POLICE DEPARTMENT MEMORANDUM#O l-101 To: Mayor Terry Howley and Decatur City Council From: Steve G ity Manager Mark Barthele y, Chief of Police Date: December 24, 001 SUBJECT: Request to authorize Civil Service Rule Changes SUMMARY RECOMMENDATION: The purpose of this memorandum is to formally request that the City of Decatur Civil Service Commission be authorized and directed to amend the Civil Services Rules. The specific amendment requested is to provide tha.t the length of the eligibility register for the Decatur Police Department be changed from two years to one year. BACKGROUND: The current length of the certification of the eligibility register for police officers is established by the Civil Service Rules for a two year period of time. Over the past 10 • years, the registry has never lasted the full two years but may extend beyond the first year. We have found that persons remaining on the eligibility register beyond the first year rarely accept a job offer with the City of Decatur, as they have found other employment. Since we are seeking the highest qualified applicants, we are in competition with other law enforcement agencies for these same candidates. �'he current two year eligibly register places us in a reactive mode. In those situations where there aze persons remaining on the eligibility after the first year, we must schedule schools and make preparations for their hiring and training before we can formally contact them and make a job offer. Only after we have determined that they are not willing to accept the job offer and the list is e�austed can we begin the application process again. This does not allow us the opportunity to schedule our testing process to match our recruiting efforts or graduation dates of the universities. Over the past three years, the Decatur Police Department has initiated a more active recruiting program, visiting many college campuses and attending various career fairs. More proactive recruiting has become necessary as the number of qualified individuals who desire careers as police officers has decreased while the need for qualified people has increased. Two of the most frequently asked questions when attending cazeer fairs are: "When are you going to test?" or"When will you be hiring?" Currently our recruiters are unable to provide accurate information to the prospective candidates because with a reactive hiring process we simply do not know when we will be able to start the process again. This response is not •