From Mayor Finch:
Mayor Finch to swear in new class Thursday, July 12 at 1:30 p.m.; 21 trainees from Bridgeport; 9 from other towns and cities are at Bridgeport Police Training Academy
Thirty trainees, 21 of which are slated to become Bridgeport officers, began training this week at the department’s Police Training Academy on Newfield Avenue. The Bridgeport trainees include six City residents.
A 2011 $5.6 million federal Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) grant will pay the salaries and benefits for the next three years for 20 of the Bridgeport officer trainees.
“Public safety is a top priority for my administration, and these additional officers will help make our streets safer for everyone,” said Mayor Bill Finch. “I’m confident that we have selected a group of trainees who will put forward a tremendous effort in the academy to learn what Chief Gaudett, their fellow officers and the citizens of Bridgeport expect from them as a member of the Bridgeport Police Department.”
Mayor Finch will swear in the recruits on Thursday, July 12 at 1:30 p.m. at the Police Training Academy at 405 Newfield Avenue.
The officers will be in training for the next six months, and are expected to graduate in January 2013. Upon graduation, the new officers will be under the tutelage of a field training officer, and will be on probation for eight months. The recruits were chosen based on the testing conducted by the City’s Civil Service department in December 2010. The first class of recruits taken from that hiring list began training in April 2011.
Recruits from surrounding towns include: four from Stratford, and one each from Milford, North Branford, Naugatuck and Norwalk.
What a disgrace!
Twenty-one new officers and only six from B’port.
Doesn’t mention racial, ethnic or gender breakdown.
In a city that is 66% minority, the new police recruits are 70% out of towners.
Thank you Grin, I have the same concerns, only 6 from Bridgeport, that is a “disgrace.” Mayor Finch is outsourcing Bridgeport tax dollars and careers in the police department to those who don’t even live here. I am sure you will find the same type of numbers when it comes to females, Latinos and blacks. Also, it will be the same numbers when the final results come out for the entry-level firefighters. Here we are getting federal money and the mayor is not targeting women, blacks and Latinos, if those numbers were good this mayor would shouting about it, let’s see the numbers. Why would Mayor Finch make it harder to get good quality candidates from Bridgeport, why?
Lennie, could you find out what the racial, ethnic and gender breakdown of these 21 new police candidates are?
There is no reason this test and the test for the fire department couldn’t be limited to city residents. The problem is David Dunn and the civil service commission. Dunn will give you a half-assed story that because the PD and FD can live out of town they therefore must open the tests to everyone. That is complete BS.
The other thing is they do not put an age limit on those who can take the test thus you can have a 50 year old take the test and get the job. This 50 year old has no chance to reach retirement age and still be on the job thus disability pension. I have researched this subject and have pointed it out to Dunn. the Federal law allows for the setting of a maximum age for public-safety jobs. The federal firefighters are required to retire at age 57. The city refuses to protect itself and its taxpayers by instituting an age limit.
*** BPT NEEDS THE MANPOWER REGARDLESS OF WHERE THEY’RE FROM OR WHAT COLOR RIGHT NOW! ALSO, TIME FOR A GOLDEN HANDSHAKE TO GET RID OF THOSE JUST TAKING UP SPACE, NO? ***
Mojo, I totally disagree with you. Whatever manpower shortage there is can easily be filled by highly qualified whites, females, Latinos and blacks right here in Bridgeport. In these hard economic times here in Bridgeport, the state and the federal government when jobs are available they must not be outsourced. The only time a mayor can really provide jobs for his city’s residents is when they hire firefighters and police officers and you would think the mayor would want his own residents who live in Bridgeport, vote in Bridgeport, pay taxes in Bridgeport and shop and spend their money in Bridgeport but NO, not this mayor or David Dunn, they don’t want Bridgeport residents because they have for the first time changed the process.
*** This process has been ongoing “before” Finch & company! Old Reaganomics government push to weaken unions by taking away their voting power in city and state local elections. This is why Bpt’s city unions are always settling for and not selecting good contracts in general for their membership. ***
Mojo, I am not talking about unions, when I said changing the process I like with the firefighter exam the City adopted a system called Candidate Physical Agility Test (CPAT). This test cost the candidate $150 and the only place you can take the exam is in Windsor Locks, CT. This was the first time this system was ever used. The day it was announced there were over 1000 candidates throughout the state who were certified for CPAT but none in Bridgeport thereby giving out-of-town candidates a very big advantage over Bridgeport residents. If this test is so good for new candidates why is it current firefighters have never taken this test; if it’s good for new candidates it should be good for current firefighters. This exam does not give the City better firefighters.
*** I’m not familiar with CPAT however why would Bpt candidates not be certified and others from out of town be? Also, why only in Windsor Locks, CT. is the exam taken? It seems if there are 20 positions available in a particular town and 1000 apply at $150 a pop, it’s all about the benjamins, no? ***
Mojo, the reason there are over 1000 out of towners is because they are volunteer firefighters in small towns around the state who are part-time firefighters, where in Bridgeport there is not a need for that white student who graduated from Central and is working at Walmart, they would have no need to be CPAT certified because there is no need for it. If this person wanted to be a firefighter in Bridgeport because his father was one here on Bridgeport his father would tell him to work out to get in shape because he never took CPAT. There is only one training site in Connecticut for CPAT and that is in Windsor. There is no need for CPAT because Bridgeport has never had a problem giving a physical agility test right here in Bridgeport. Mojo, it is about the “benjamins,” it doesn’t cost the City anything for the exam, the International Association of Fire Fighters (the union) and the State Fire Academy in Windsor will make the money. There is no reason to “outsource” Bridgeport jobs, Bridgeport jobs should be for Bridgeport residents and taxpayers.