Posted: 8/2/2006 9:45:22 AM EDT
| What is the difference between civil service and non civil service police officer jobs? I've searched around and came up dry, so I appreciate anything ya'll can tell me. Thanks in advance. |
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Start here: www.capitol.state.tx.us/statutes/lg.toc.htm Specifically Chapter 143. In the Reader's Digest explaination Civil Service protects Officers from being terminated without cause as opposed to being a strictly at will employee. |
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Non-civil service positions (law enforcement & fire/rescue) in TX are "at will" employees. They can be fired at any time, apparently without reason. Civil service positions (LE and Fire/rescue) have strict hiring and firing guidelines that have to be followed per Texas state law. I simplified it greatly, but I'm sure more can be located on the net. If you are a member of Texas Municipal Police Officers Association TMPA They might be able to give you a more in depth answer |
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In Illinois you can be an "at will", a civil service, or a Board hire. IL allows for the creation of a Board of Fire and Police Commissioners (BOFPC) that is responsible for establishing tests (promotion and entrance), and lists of candidates. They're also a means of discipline/redress if bargaining doesn't work. In IL AFAIK a civil service board covers all employees, not just LE/FD/EMS. At will, or course, is just that. No board, no union, no recourse. (Not pushing unions, just like the established hiring format of a board system.) |
What they said and also it sets hiring standards and promotional tests. In Texas civil service, a civilan board makes up the test and administers it. All applicants must take the test at the same time in the same location. The test is good for one year or until all candidates have been exhausted. The civil service board then pass on the results to the police department. The civil service board also sets up the other hiring standards such as the obstacle course. When a police agency does its hiring, they must do so on the ranking of the written test starting at #1 and moving down in order. If you are #1 on the test the agency can hire or reject you but they cannot offer a job to #2 until they are finished with you. Promotion are made off of test scores. The same civilian boards decides what materials the test will be given on and they administer the test. All tests (like the hiring test) are given at the same time and graded on the spot. You have several days to file an appeal of any questions and the board hears the appeals (my civil service board has overturned several questions in past tests). The results are then passed on to the police department and promotions are made off of the test scores. Civil service is an attempt to get away from the good-ol'-boy system where the mayor's son and the chief's nephew are the ones hired and promoted by the department. It is not a perfect system but it tends to help a lot of people get jobs. If the agency has collective bargaining also, then any part of civil service can be overturned by contract. |
| Good to know. Thanks for the info! Are there any examples on the kinds of questions on a civil service test and how it is graded? I know that it tests for proficiency in basic math and verbal skills, but I would like to know more specifically if it involves stuff like geometry, trignometry (sp?), calculus, etc. I really want to get into a certain department, but they only have 3 openings and is a civil service job. |
Most departments supply a study guide for the Civil Service Test. Our's is supplied with the initial employment packet. |
I have only seen the civil service tests locally and they required no advanced math. I was more like word problems involving math much like the reading skills portions of the test. I can assure you that advanced calculus is not required to get a job as a police officer. |