East Providence Police wonder why Layoff's are needed

If you where wondering why the city of East Providence cannot afford to keep an additional 13 East Providence police officers on the force that are not needed, you need to look no farther than their contract located here.

Look at Contract page 19 (PDF page 23) and you can see why city's and towns are hemorrhaging under the financial abuses of our tax dollars being spent foolishly.

Here is an excerpt of that page:

7.01 PAID HOLIDAYS Members of the bargaining unit working thirty-seven and one half (37.5) hours and who are normally required to work on authorized holidays shall be granted uniformly an additional one day's pay for each of the following holidays and the member's birth date:
New Year's Day
Thanksgiving Day
Veteran's Day
Friday after Thanksgiving
Labor Day
Christmas Day
Washington's Birthday
Memorial Day
Columbus Day
Easter Sunday
Independence Day
Martin Luther King Day
Member's Birthday
National Police Memorial Day (May 15)

Members of the bargaining unit working the 5 days on 2 days off schedule will be granted the same holidays and the member’s birthday off.

I don't know about you, but I know I don't get a paid holiday for taking my birthday off!

ARE THEY SERIOUS? National Police Memorial Day is a PAID HOLIDAY??!@!? Washington's Birthday? Columbus Day?!

Then we wonder why we are being taxed up the wazoo!

How about after a year of service (page 21 PDF page 25) they get 15 days of sick pay?

Let's talk about vacations... Here it is (page 26 PDF page 30):

10.01 VACATION (A) All members of the bargaining unit with less than ten (10) years of departmental seniority shall earn sixteen (16) days per year vacation time off. All members with ten (10) years of departmental seniority but less than twenty (20) years of service shall earn twenty-four (24) days per year vacation time off. All members with twenty (20) or more years of departmental seniority shall earn twenty-eight (28) days per year vacation time off. (B) Members will earn vacation at the higher rate for the full calendar year in the year that they complete ten (10) years and twenty (20) years of departmental seniority.


We pay for their dry cleaning as well...




Clothing allowance...

An annual clothing cleaning and maintenance allowance of six hundred thirty ($630.00) dollars shall be paid quarterly.

And an additional $500.00 to purchase uniforms EVERY YEAR. Hmmm do they actually use the money to purchase NEW uniforms? Who keeps track of that?

Health Insurance:

3. Effective November 1, 2008, active duty members ONLY will contribute on a pre-tax basis to be applied to the principal only (not WRI portion) $14.00 per week.

Dental Coverage:

12.02 DENTAL COVERAGE The City shall provide and pay for dental coverage Levels I, II and III for individual members and Levels I, II, III and IV if the member is married or has eligible dependents, and the Student to Age 25 Rider.



How many of your employers are mandated to pay you when a family member passes away? In East Providence they do!

In the event of a death occurring in the immediate family of a member of the police department, the City of East Providence agrees to pay such member for time lost not to exceed a period of four (4) days for the purpose of attending funeral services and making necessary arrangements therefor. A fifth day may be granted at the discretion of the Chief of Police. The term "immediate family" shall be defined to include father, mother, spouse, children, stepchildren, brother and sister of a member, mother-in-law, father-in-law,grandfather, grandmother, sister-in-law, and brother-in-law. In the event of a death occurring of an aunt, uncle, niece or nephew of a member of the police department, the member shall receive one (1) day of bereavement leave.

How about when they have to go to court to justify their actions against the accused? ....

Anytime a police officer is required to appear in court on a scheduled short day, that officer shall be given the rest of the day off in lieu of court pay. (A) Court time on a police officer's long day or day off shall be at time and one half rate of pay with a minimum of four (4) hours pay.

24.01 LIFE INSURANCE
Each member of the bargaining unit shall be provided with a $45,000.00 life insurance policy during their active service and a $7,500.00 life insurance policy upon retirement.
Wow... I wish my boss would pay for my life insurance policy.

So when you get your next tax bill from the city of east providence, now you know where your money is going.

East Providence Police Department Layoff's

Recently when I read about the recent hooplah regarding the East Providence Police Department, I was glad to see that they are finally laying off some of the city's police officers!

I think that there are too many police officers in a town or city when you can't ever get in your car and drive through without seeing a police officer. I actually moved out of the city because of the constant police presence everywhere you go.

Not to mention the fact that they are so over staffed, all they do is lye in wait hiding behind mailboxes and trees to give you a speeding ticket for going over the speed limit by 5 mph. Anyone that lives in East Providence knows what I am talking about.

During this time of such finacial duress on the taxpayers, the police should also, without a doubt take a hit and terminate UN-NEEDED police officers to save money.

Afterall, are we living in a police state? The crime levels in the city of East Providence Rhode Island do not warrant all of the police officers that are employed by the city.

Of course, all the police care about are their own asses so they will fight the city tooth and nail with their unions in order to save 13 jobs that are NOT NEEDED.

The citizens of this state need to wake up... if the 13 jobs are not warranted, then who signed a contract with the unions that make it impossible for the city to lay them off? I will start posting union contracts on my blog so that the citizens of this state can see for themselves the UNBELIEVABLE sweetheart deals the police departments get in their union contracts!

All at the detriment of the taxpayers!

View the article regarding this matter in the Providence Journal Here