The City of Galveston Police and Fire Civil Service Commission on Monday voted unanimously to require the Galveston Police Department and the Galveston Fire Department to conduct annual performance evaluations of their employees. Listen: MP3 RealPlayer

Police Chief Charles Wiley, who requested the action, told the commission that he initiated evaluations when he began his community policing program.

“It is an annual review for all sworn officers and it occurs at the end of the calendar year,” Wiley said.

“The Fire Department at this time does not now have an evaluation process,” said Fire Chief Jeff Smith. “My last personal evaluation was 1983.”

Assistant City Manager Carolyn Cox, who is director of the Civil Service Commission, explained that personnel evaluations were once policy for all city employees, but police and firefighters have not been regularly evaluated since 1983, when collective bargaining began.

“Once collective bargaining came in, proficiency reports went away,” Cox said.

Chief Wiley presented the form he is currently using to the commission for review; and Chief Smith said he will develop one.
 

The commission also considered Revised Civil Service Rules that will be effective on March 22, 2011.

The commission received a letter from Local 571 of the International Association of Fire Fighters, but it was not read aloud or discussed at the meeting.