New Englanders

Would like to hear from any transplants from New England to Collier County. How do you like the area down there and the agency? Thanks in advance for the information.

I used to live in New Hampster for years but was not in Law Enforcement there. I miss the seasons and lack of traffic and construction but the weather is sweet here. The agency is most like the state police in comparisson and size. You would be hard pressed to find a better agency to work for in all South Florida if this is the area you like. You'll find MUCH less political interference with your daily job here. Equipment and technology are superior although the uniforms aren't quite as nice as they are up north. No union for us by choice. We just dont need it, we've been taken care of by our sheriff for years and it would just add another level of burocrats to the process.

I used to live in New Hampster for years but was not in Law Enforcement there. I miss the seasons and lack of traffic and construction but the weather is sweet here. The agency is most like the state police in comparisson and size. You would be hard pressed to find a better agency to work for in all South Florida if this is the area you like. You'll find MUCH less political interference with your daily job here. Equipment and technology are superior although the uniforms aren't quite as nice as they are up north. No union for us by choice. We just dont need it, we've been taken care of by our sheriff for years and it would just add another level of burocrats to the process.

Thanks for your reply. With no union how safe is your job there though? As you know up here, they can't just fire you, it takes a lot with the union protection so I'm just curious how safe your job is without the union or how easily they can get rid of you. Going for a pension, you want the safety of knowing that you're tied in. How's the pay there and the overtime availability? I like to get 10 hours per week of overtime. Is that feasible down there and what kind of details do you usually get there? Thanks for the input I appreciate it. Oh and comparing the quality of life, schools and safety to NH, how does that area compare?

Thanks again and stay safe.

[Curios George]

Living up north must be the worst!!

I can not believe that if you work up north and are not in a union that your employer can just fire you for no reason at all but more so, they can afford to hire a model employee and then fire them without cause. Thank God you have unions up north to protect your job even if you are a screw up and deserve to be fired.

In all honesty it sounds like to me that the union is a free pass to do whatever you want to do without accepting responsibility for your own actions or conduct.

Hurry up and moved to Florida because this is a Right to Work state. That means unions have no power and are worthless in this state but don't you worry your little self about that!! If you actually do your job, follow the policies and conduct yourself with respect (Towards others as well) you will not have a thing to worry about.

Just think, you get to keep all that union due money in your pocket, put in a honest days work for an honest wage and go home to collect a paycheck at the end of the pay cycle. Life is good!

Man, I did not know how good we have it here in the south!! No wonder all those people from up north come to Florida... Glad we can oblige yall :wink:

Living up north must be the worst!!

I can not believe that if you work up north and are not in a union that your employer can just fire you for no reason at all but more so, they can afford to hire a model employee and then fire them without cause. Thank God you have unions up north to protect your job even if you are a screw up and deserve to be fired.

In all honesty it sounds like to me that the union is a free pass to do whatever you want to do without accepting responsibility for your own actions or conduct.

Hurry up and moved to Florida because this is a Right to Work state. That means unions have no power and are worthless in this state but don't you worry your little self about that!! If you actually do your job, follow the policies and conduct yourself with respect (Towards others as well) you will not have a thing to worry about.

Just think, you get to keep all that union due money in your pocket, put in a honest days work for an honest wage and go home to collect a paycheck at the end of the pay cycle. Life is good!

Man, I did not know how good we have it here in the south!! No wonder all those people from up north come to Florida... Glad we can oblige yall :wink:

Being in the union doesn't give you a free pass by any means to do what you want. The unions up here fight for the officers etc in getting them what they deserve. Financially for example raises every year, so that you don't have a veteran officer only making 5K or 6K more then a rookie as you see down there. Also a big thing up north is the fact that upons retirement in 20 years you have your health covered, so you're not losing what pension you do have to paying for that. The unions are much different up here and do a great job in fighting for those that they represent. You are most definitely held accountable, but more so the command staff is held accountable and can't just change and make things up as they go along. I've worked both parts of the country and there are pros and cons to both. I'm just trying to understand how it works there at CCSO and unfortunately this site usually has those that only attack others when they ask questions.

[Paradise]

Here is a copy of a newspaper article about two cops who are part of a union. Tell me that the union does not protect the worthless as they do the good ones. Everyone involved in this should have been fired for outright Dereliction of Duty!!

The point is rather mute because the unions do not work nor does anyone respect the unions in the south! So if you want to do it the way you did up north you may want to just stay up north or you might end up like one of the northerners who have come down here and are miserable because we do things differently...and like it that way.
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A pair of Cincinnati police officers and five supervisors face disciplinary action after the officers were accused of goofing off and playing video games while on duty.

Chief Tom Streicher said the officers, whose names have not been released, had been assigned to 60 days of foot patrol in District 2 after they were issued a citation for not wearing their seat belts during a traffic accident.

Instead of patrolling the streets or responding to calls from dispatchers, Streicher said the pair stayed inside a substation located in a strip mall.

“They basically left roll call, went to a substation (and) stayed inside that substation all day,” Streicher told News 5’s Eric Flack. “My understanding is they were watching television, playing video games and, if they left, they left to get something to eat and they came straight back and spent the entire eight hours locked in a room over in Hyde Park.”

"They turned in worksheets for almost two months, with no activity at all, not a single ticket written," Streicher said.

Other police officers sent anonymous letters to Streicher complaining about the pair and questioning the actions of some supervisors.

Public Reaction To Cops' Game Playing: 'You're Kidding Me'

“Sgt. Eric Schneider actually found them on more than one occasion in there and didn’t take any action to correct their activity nor did he address it in an adequate fashion,” Streicher said. “In fact, one of the officers reported that Sgt. Schneider said to him, ‘I don’t blame you; if it was me I wouldn’t do anything, either,’ and turned around and walked out.”

Streicher also identified Lt. Randy Webb as the officer in charge, and the chief said he also was aware of the officers’ conduct and did not take any further action.

“We’ve got a complete breakdown in command of the patrol here, (and) we’ve got a complete breakdown on duty and responsibility on the part of some officers,” Streicher said. "Without a doubt, people were at minimum delayed in receiving police service and at worst, did not receive police service that they required."

The chief did not identify any specific calls the officers might have ignored, and Streicher said the supervisors would be reassigned and bear the brunt of the punishment.

[Paparazzi LEO]

Guest50 I am suspicious of the intent of your post to begin with. You come here asking for information about working in a southern law enforcement agency because you are from up north but then you state "I've worked both parts of the country" If this is true then you would already know what it is like for a New Englander right?

It sounds like to me that you are already down here because of this phrase "the command staff is held accountable and can't just change and make things up as they go along." which we have heard more than once on this message board from a GUEST.

And finally we have "I'm just trying to understand how it works there at CCSO and unfortunately this site usually has those that only attack others when they ask questions." Well no one has attacked anyone for asking questions. Take a look throughout our board and there are plenty of people looking for information on employment at CCSO that have their questions answered in a professional manner. We even have an entire thread dedicated to employment. You received a professional answer to yur original question but then YOU made an inference to the UNION and that is a no no in the south but hey, since you already have worked this part of the country I bet you already know that :oops:

Easy George, He probably has no concept of the difference here in work without a union. With the union in this state basically having no power, it just adds more middle man to the mess. No one gets fired for no reason. We have had members fired over the years but this was due to some very serious violations and or crimes. These were people you would have fired yourself if they worked for you and did the same acts. Without a union we can also sit face to face with the Sheriff and discuss or future with the agency due to our mis-deeds. There just is no random firings or people getting the axe because they aren't liked.
Quality of life is perspecitve in this area due to the huge contrast in environments. Most of NH is rural and the towns are very small, friendly and have their own tiny P.D. Family time and activities are much more prominent. Here it is very populated but spread out. The area, including the streets, medians,parks,beaches and shopping are beautiful. Traffic is more Mercedes,land rover,Hummer,Bmw,Bentley and Porsche than Buicks and Chevy. That doesn't mean the people in them are any better behaved. You can make the quality of life what you want here. There is plenty of family activity and sports etc but you may find the pace of daily life much quicker. After being here a while though, you may miss the small town with one traffic light even with the snow. It's all about what YOU want and your family.

Having never worked in Law Enforcement up north, I can not comment on that except to say that I do love my job...but if you have kids, the schools up there are better. You can confirm that with anyone who has moved here from New England.

No health costs payments for a single deputy...and cheap family plans
Pay raises every year
We don't pay a dime into one of the best retirement plans in the country
We get take home vehicles
We have first rate equipment.......that we are given money to buy

What could a union do anyway? protect my job you say?? Well, outside of New England, a sheriff can pretty much get rid of someone if he wants to...union or not. Here, deputies work for the sheriff, not for the county or city. On the other hand, although maybe its easier to lose your job, its easier for lazy arsed soup sandwiches to lose theirs too; instead of automatically becoming a supervisor once they put their time in.

assumung your question is legit.

Go South. New England Sucks. I work in Vermont and hate every minute of it.

Go South. New England Sucks. I work in Vermont and hate every minute of it.

Not fitting in with the "crunchies" Steve?

Easy Guys,
I know where New England is coming from. In many states, the deputies change when the sheriff changes. Especially in North Carolina, Virginia and the like. We have civil service coverage because of that very thing. It's not a union, just a board with rules and they handle our regs as well so that the sheriff can't just change horses in mid stream so to speak. But I to am interested in Collier Co. not for a retirement post but to be an active member and being a working part of the dept. there. But you have to ask the questions to get an answer and see if the dept. is what you are looking for.

If you have a chance to work for Collier take it. I made the mistake of coming north and trying it out here. It has been one bad nightmare after another. Between pay being the lowest in the country and poorly run departments it just isn't what I planned on. When it comes to unions, I only have bad things to say about them.

I hear that Collier is going through some tough times with all the changes and that is sad. I am looking into coming back to Florida in the spring but with all the problems there I don't think I would even try to apply. I probably wouldn't pass the poly.

Miami Gardens has a heck of an offer. Anyway, the grass isn't greener anywhere else. Collier is a great place to work and has many hero's. Regardless if you are from New England or not they will make you welcome.

Steve

PS. What are crunchies?

"Crunchies" are those little Depalma pebbles in your underwear - Sonic poo!

Crunchies are the people wearing socks with birckenstok sandals, tie dye shirts and unwashed hair....you might see them at a IMF protest or holding a sign that says "Bush lied kids died"

BTW, I have worked for Collier for several years now and I can tell you that it is the same now as it was when you left..but as always, when certain people get passed by, they get angry. Cops love to *****, regardless of where they are.

Oh, Crunchies, They suck! I have been reading some of the post on here and it seems you are right. Same amount of *****ing going on there. When you work for a place like CCSO you don't know what you have until it's gone. I would give anything to have 1/16 of the techno you have there. We have nothing here as far as computers (mdt's) Most of all you States Attorney's at least try to put people in jail. Here we do all of their work to include all the paper, and they no file for the smallest of reasons. It really is a sad state. I would love to write a book called Vermont-the lawless state. No one goes to jail here. Especially sex offenders.

liberalism is a mental disorder....

Steve did you work in FL or for CCSO? CCSO sounds like a good place, obviously on this board you have the complainers, but what can you do. My big thing is at the end of it all come retirement how the quality of life is going to be with the package I would receive.

Most of what Steve saw here was the bottom half of his steering wheel, and the bottom of a beer mug....one was due to his lack of height, and the other was due to his elbow problem.

I find it amazing that people who like to talk smack about others always use Guest or some other name so no one knows who they really are. I call this being a coward. As for my only seeing the bottom of my steering wheel, ha ha very funny. As for my elbow problem, my beer intake never affected my job performance, which if you are who I think you are it has affected yours plenty.
I come to this forum because I am miss CCSO and the friends I had there. If you don't like me or have a problem with what I say just disagree with me. If you have something to say about me, my family or anything else negitive, put your name at the end so when I am home visiting family we can get together and discuss it.