Residency rule goes down the tubes
Decision made possible by change in state law that allowed residency for Pittsburgh police to be subject to collective bargaining
In a victory for Pittsburgh police officers who want to live outside the city, a draft arbitration award has done away with the residency requirement.
The draft award with input from the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge No. 1, now sets a radius for officers to live within 25 air miles of police headquarters.
Not everyone is thrilled about the change.
Joe King, president of the city firefighters union, talked about the value of having city employees, especially cops and firefighters, living where they serve.
“We know the demographics. We know the topography. We know the makeup of our neighborhoods. You cannot replace that connection you have with the neighborhood people. You can’t put a price on it,” Mr. King told Gazette reporters.
But the FOP’s Sgt. LaPorte said people were overreacting to the residency change. In addition to giving Pittsburgh cops more personal freedom to send their kids to different schools and more choices about where they want to live, the change will also mean a larger pool of qualified applicants for the police department.
“I think for the city this is a huge win for them. I think they’re going to be able to attract from a bigger job pool, more qualified candidates,” Sgt. LaPorte said. “People are going to be here because they want to be here. This won’t be a stepping stone to somewhere else.”
The arbitration decision was made possible by a recent change in state law that allowed residency for Pittsburgh police to be subject to collective bargaining. A clause in the police contract allowed the residency issue to be reopened if that law changed.
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