Firemen Not Restricted
P.D. Holds Hostage Its PAPD Applicants

By REUVEN BLAU

Through an odd twist, city cops have been blocked from transferring to the higher-paying Port Authority Police Department due to the NYPD's strict policy limiting the release of their personnel files, while their counterparts in the FDNY have had no such problems.

GUS DANESE: A needless barrier.

The latest PAPD class of 81 recruits sworn in on Jan. 8 included five former FDNY employees (three Firefighters, one EMT, and one civilian worker), but did not have any NYPD officers, said PA spokesman Tony Ciavolella.

FDNY Can Stand Loss

The NYPD's and FDNY's conflicting transfer policies are likely related to their drastically different attrition rates. The NYPD loses approximately 3,000 officers each year due to retirements and officers seeking better pay in surrounding jurisdictions. The FDNY lost 510 employees last year, an attrition rate of less than 5 percent, compared to 8 percent for the NYPD.

Last January, 35 NYPD officers sued the department, charging that it was purposely withholding the information in an attempt to prevent the officers from switching to the higher-paying PA.

PATRICK J. LYNCH: Let my people go.

According to reports, the PA had been particularly successful in luring away NYPD cops since 9/11 with its significantly higher salaries. In all, the PA has hired 329 former NYPD officers since the terrorist attacks, and former city cops account for 60 percent of all officers hired by the PA over the past five years, insiders said.

The past two PA classes, however, didn't include any NYPD officers, Mr. Ciavolella noted.

Paul J. Browne, the chief spokesman for NYPD Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly, last week defended the department's record review policy, which was tightened in 2003. "The Police Department uses standards recognized and adhered to by employers across the country," he said in an e-mail. "We confirm dates of employment, but we don't supply copies of personnel records."

The lawsuit challenging the policy is currently enmeshed in litigation. "They are literally holding people hostage," said one police source, referring to the officers seeking to transfer.

PA Police Officers' starting salary is $37,100, which rises to $65,800 after five years. The maximum pay is $90,000 after nine years. In contrast, NYPD recruits receive $25,100 for their first six months on the job. The pay rises to $32,700 afterwards, and jumps to $59,588 after 5-1/2 years' of service.

Mayor: Count the OT

During his weekly WABC AM radio show, Mayor Bloomberg Jan. 19 acknowledged that the starting salary is low, but claimed the figure is "misleading" because cops have "guaranteed overtime" to help augment their pay.

As for the 35 officers trying to transfer, the PA has deferred their candidacies, as it continues to seek the additional personnel data. "What we are looking for is more information, such as discipline records and work performance," Mr. Ciavolella said. "To us that's important information. We look to get the most-qualified and best people to protect our facilities."

Mr. Ciavolella noted that several other individuals had their applications deferred because their private-sector companies also refused to grant PA investigators access to their personnel files.

"We need to have their backgrounds thoroughly checked," Mr. Ciavolella said. "We need to do our due diligence; it's a critical component to help us determine the best and most-qualified candidates."

'NYPD Already Checked'

But some insiders last week questioned why the PA can't merely conduct a routine background check of the NYPD officers, as it does for other entry-level recruits. "I don't know what they are looking for as far as to hire these police officers," said Gus Danese, president of the PA Police Benevolent Association. "I think all the groundwork was done with the NYPD."

He added, "If there was an issue, I'm sure that the city Police Department would have dealt with them. The mere fact that they are still employed should suffice."

Patrick J. Lynch, president of the Patrolmen's Benevolent Association, has blasted Commissioner Kelly and the Bloomberg administration for creating the problem.

"The city can't hire enough police officers and can't honestly keep the ones they have from leaving for better opportunities, so they resort to underhanded tactics like refusing to share the personnel information," he charged last winter.