Leaving Civil Service

Post date: Mar 06, 2018 7:31:38 PM

The Police Association (the local union) has agreed with the recommendation of the Police Chief and I to go through the process to leave Civil Service.

Some background on Civil Service:

The primary purpose of civil service when the Massachusetts legislature enacted the civil service, “Merit System”, in 1884, was to protect hiring and discipline from patronage and political interference. Today, other policies and collective bargaining agreements provide these types of protection.

Williamstown voted at Town Meeting in 1959 to participate.

For us, the biggest challenge is hiring. Applicants are centrally tested through Civil Service. We can only hire from that list and there are geographical limits and protections. This has meant that we can have a challenge recruiting and/or retaining officers. As we have some officers nearing retirement, beginning the process now to leave Civil Service will put us in a stronger position to recruit in the coming years. In addition, it allows the hiring authority, in our case the Town Manager, to maintain control over a process for promotions, so those decisions are made locally focused on the full need of the community and the capability of the applicant, rather than relying on the outcome of only a mathematical function. Our expectation is that current members of the department will remain part of the Civil Service program, but all hires after the effect date of the change will not be.

In order to make this move, there are several items that we are addressing:

Negotiating clarifications in the contract with the Police Association to remove references to Civil Service, outline areas previously covered by Civil Service that need to have supporting language within our local contract now and initiating the process to petition the General Court for a special act to release us from the requirements of Civil Service. On the last front, I am working with Town Counsel to get the key steps in place. Notable for us is the need for Town Meeting to vote to authorize the Board to petition the General Court. See sample language below.

SAMPLE ARTICLE

To see if the Town will vote to authorize the Board of Selectmen to petition the General Court for special legislation providing that the positions of Police Officers of all ranks, including Police Chief, shall not be subject to the Civil Service statute, all as set forth below; provided, however, that the General Court may make clerical or editorial changes of form only to the bill, unless the Board of Selectmen approves amendments to the bill before enactment by the General Court which are within the scope of the general public objectives of the petition, and to authorize the Board of Selectmen to approve such amendments.