WHAT EVER

So I hear around five offciers to leave on new adventures with other departments..Seems like Tampa could drop there FTO progarm since we train for them and help fill their ranks. I blame none of them they need to do what is best for them and their families. I hate losing good officer's and from the sounds of the wind we will. I my self am thinking about selling trinkets on the corner of Alexander and James L. Redman. Only problem is that I have no trinkets to sell. :evil:

That's the rumor I have heard myself. You would think someone would see this and make positive changes. It's a great Dept. but needs to catch up with what the others are offering in the area.

There is some truth to the relentless rumors that people are leaving. I know because I am one of those people. It's sad when officers have to sell their homes, file bankruptcy or be forced to work extra duty just to get by. Most of the people I've talked to no longer work extra duty to pay for family dinners or trips, they work it because they need money to pay the bills. I have heard the argument "well, that officer shouldn't have gone out and bought a $200,000+ home. They over extended themselves" That is a bulls*it argument. We deserve to own a home just as much as the next guy and our families deserve the best of everything. It's not that we are over extending oursevles, the average home costs that much now. The city fails to realize that the cost of living has increased, on average, approximately 3.8 percent over the past year. That means the the price of everything we buy has increased by 3.8% since the last time we got a raise. This year has seen the highest increase in the cost of living in the past ten years. Look it up if you dont believe me. (US Bureau of Labor Statistics). That increase doesn't even take into account the increase in property taxes and homeowners insurance! I make less money now than I did when I started at the police department several years ago. To make matters worse, the city made no effort to look for better insurance or to adequately increase contributions to cover the monumental cost of our insurance premiums. It's the city's fault that our insurance sucks a**. Why are we picking up the tab? I don't believe it's Chief's fault that our City Commission is comprised of a bunch of tight a** idiots. I am sure Chief would have loved to get a nice raise with the rest of us. This is what happens when you elect a millionaire and a bunch of out of touch egoists to run a city. It is a shame that we are losing so many people to TPD and HCSO. We have so much potential to be a great agency. Like Becky said, we are all just a number. We can be replaced just as easy as we replaced someone else. God willing, many officers, including myself, will be advancing to bigger and better things in the near future. I would like to say a mass exodus would send a message to the city, but I would just be kidding myself and everyone else.

I AGREE WITH THAT ...P.S ANYONE HAVE ANY TRINKETS I COULD HAVE TO SELL...

I totally agree with what was said. We as LEO's in Plant City should be on the scale of the surrounding departments in the Bay Area. I even feel bad for the boys and gals at FHP, let alone Plant City. This is a great department and has good potential. Extra duty should be for maybe that flat screen you always wanted or maybe you want to plan a trip to go to Spain, England or something with your family. Extra duty should not be just to make ends meet. We should be able to support our familys just on our salary alone. Plus this gives us more time to spend with our family, instead of having to work those extra details because we can't pay our bills. It lets us live a little bit better and helps us go to sleep better knowing that we are taking care of. Would it take a mass multitude of officers to leave just so someone can get a hint? Some would say money is not everything, but it sure helps to pay those bills. Because those creditors do not care when it comes the 1st and the 15th. This is a great agency and I want to see it flurish to a point to where the majority of officers stay at Plant City. I pray that it gets to that point. I know that we can easily be replaced and we are looked at like a number, but that is not how it should be. Yes we are a small department and the department should take care of us because we are out there on the front line taking care of it.

MAKE SURE YOU FILL OUT A MEMO FOR THE CHIEF SO HE CAN ALLOW AND APPROVE YOUR SIDE JOB. WOULD NOT WANT YOU TO GET IN TROUBLE FOR MAKING MORE MONEY SELLING TRINKETS OVER YOUR REGULAR SHIFT PAY.

If the trinkets doesn't work out, try Manpower. They pay daily. We used to have an officer who worked there on his days off to make ends meet.

I have had an app in for almost a year now. I know of several officers who have left for Tampa and other agencies. Why not hire some more people? I just called city hall the other day to have them send my app. back down to the P.D. What gives guys?

The chief is still very selective about who he will hire, even though we face huge turnover issues. If you were not selected, there is probably a reason. Only you know the answer to that.

yeah selective, worked well so far. Really its cause they dont have to worry about working short handed. Think about it, if he gets through a year working with less officers and the city still pays for the alotted amount by budget, more money for his personal toys.

If you haven't been selected, don't be discouraged. Many applicants have applied here and weren't selected only to be picked up by TPD, HCSO, or some other agency. One of the problems of a selection process is if you are otherwise qualified, it is all subjective. You may not be hired simply because one of the interviewers didn't like you or they were looking for someone else (minority, officer with experience, officer without experience, etc). If you really want to get on a law enforcement department and you are qualified with no big skeletons in your closet, you need to put in an application with 3-5 different agencies. This includes big and small agencies (from the size of Mulberry to Tampa).

1. "Good Ole Boy" network and way of doing business, ie; "Well, some a them there officers left huh? Well, guess we'll hire summore then."

2. Heard your Chief wants to be the next City Manager and is going nowhere any time soon, ie; will probably go to 26 years then take the drop and/or will go as long as he needs to until he is appointed as City Manager. (The powers that be will not hire anyone who will fight them when your Chief is gone.)

3. Heard mechanics in the city make $17.49/hr you're starting, reportedly is $17.39

4. No union help in sight, ie; "At Will Agency"/Black Ball list which leads to the conveyor belt of, "Well, ya know SOP says, "Blah blah blah..." and you've been late 5 times in the last 8 years, I COUNTED! and you said sumthin to that one feller that you shouldn't oughta said...blah blah blah....HAND ME YOUR GUN AND BADGE and bring the rest of your stuff to McDonalds and I'll send some of the fellers over to git it directly..."

5. Heard like between 5-10 of your Officers have apps in at TPD and HCSO on top of guys you've recently lost

As a former PCPD Officer who now works for a large agency...I'd, "Send them fellers a message and bolt IN MASS. GIT WHILE THE GITTIN IS GOOD!