More than six months after Town Meeting voted on a measure it hoped would address Belmont Police Department’s “hiring problem,” the department is operating at roughly 80% capacity.
According to Officer Cory Taylor, president of the Belmont Police Patrolman’s Association, the vacancies, on top of extended absences, are costing the department overtime pay and causing delays in following up on investigations for reports of housebreaks or fraud.
“I wouldn’t say there’s a safety issue at this point, but… there’s extra things that don’t get taken care of in a timely manner,” Taylor said, noting there are still minimum staffing requirements for patrol officers.
For example, officers don’t always have time to respond to traffic complaints.
“They’re tied up with something else,” he said.
In November, Town Meeting voted to abandon the Civil Service program — the state’s hiring system for public service employees — in an attempt to fill the growing number of vacancies in the department. However, the interview process is only now set to begin shortly for a handful of candidates.
According to Chief James MacIsaac, contract negotiations are still underway with both the patrol and supervisory unions. Once addressed under Civil Service, details on hiring, firing, discipline, and promotions need to be agreed upon.
Addressing a ‘Hiring Problem’
Belmont first adopted Civil Service in 1915. The program required Belmont to make hires from a list of people who passed the Civil Service exam, with preference given to Belmont residents. Applicants were also required to be 31 years old or younger.
During Special Town Meeting in November, members criticized the program for being archaic, while the Belmont Police Patrolmen’s Association said it protects its members from nepotism and discrimination. Union members urged Town Meeting members to vote against the change, arguing a hiring policy and contract negotiations should precede the vote.
Instead, Town Meeting approved leaving Civil Service during its Nov. 9 vote, leading Belmont to join dozens of communities that have abandoned the program in recent years.
Prior to the vote, Select Board Chair Roy Epstein told Town Meeting members the change would address a “hiring problem” that had turned into a “public safety problem.”
“We need to anticipate retirements,” he said.
At the time, there were four vacancies and no applicants to fill them. As of late May, the number of vacancies had increased to six.
Union Concerns
To this day, union representatives are frustrated by the process the town has taken regarding leaving Civil Service. Specifically, Taylor maintains the town should have bargained and developed a hiring policy prior to posting jobs or hiring. His union’s contracts aren’t set to expire until 2025.
“We brought it up at a couple of meetings… but we were not really allowed to have a voice to express our actual concerns,” said Taylor.
Taylor said in the last six months, meetings with administrators have been few and far between. Progress at one of the most recent meetings, he added, “was minimal.”
“Morale is the lowest I’ve ever seen it in almost 20 years,” he said, attributing it, in part, to a sense that the town administration isn’t supporting its police. “I don’t know why someone would want to come work here. There’s a number of people in my union that are actively looking to try to go to other places.”
MacIsaac declined to do an interview with The Voice, responding instead to questions over email. In November, MacIsaac said that while union support would’ve been “preferred” before leaving Civil Service, the situation was too dire to wait. It was a problem he said he “couldn’t turn a blind eye to.”
In a recent email, MacIsaac said the department is budgeted for 48 sworn officers but has been operating with 37 in recent months. Of the six vacancies that can be filled, three are in the detective division, and two are supervisor positions.
The additional five vacancies, which can’t be filled, are people either on extended National Guard duty or out on long-term injury or illness.
“Operating short-staffed puts tremendous pressure on an organization that functions around the clock, leading to significant stress for both the employees and the organization,” MacIsaac said in his email to The Voice last week. “Increasing our staffing levels will allow for necessary promotions and opportunities within the detective division, which should help improve morale. While our command staff strives to boost morale through the means available to us, some challenges lie beyond our sphere of control and will require individual effort to address.”
Last month, one patrol officer retired, he said, and another officer shared plans to retire next year. There are several others who have the necessary time on the job to retire if and when they wish.
MacIsaac said in November that he reviewed examples of other towns’ policies and anticipated a new policy for his department to be ready in December. However, it wasn’t until May 7 that the department posted a job opportunity announcement and its new hiring policy.
Taylor said his union had no role in creating the policy despite an expectation that the unions would be involved.
Although Taylor hadn’t reviewed the policy thoroughly himself as of its posting, it has been sent to the union’s attorney for review.
According to Taylor, police departments across the country are working short-staffed as they struggle to fill vacancies. He said Belmont is facing stiff competition and could attract more candidates if the salaries were higher.
“If the town isn’t willing to incentivize… people to come here, you’re not going to get candidates,” he said.
