TESTIMONY
Dalvanie Powell, President, United Probation Officers Association on Challenges Facing NYC Probation Officers
4:43:34
·
4 min
Dalvanie Powell discusses the significant impact of New York City's probation officers in the criminal justice system, focusing on their roles, qualifications, and challenges, especially regarding workforce reductions and salary discrepancies.
- Powell highlights the essential role of probation officers in providing second chances and saving the city and state significant funds by diverting individuals from incarceration.
- The testimony reveals a severe reduction in workforce, from 1,550 officers to 668, impacting the Department of Probation's operations.
- Powell stresses salary and benefits issues facing probation officers, noting their salaries lag far behind those of other law enforcement agencies despite facing similar risks.
- Recent efforts to address these challenges include collaborations with the mayor's office and initiatives for civil service exams for probation officers.
- Powell urges city council support for fair compensation and better support for probation officers, underscoring their frontline role in alternatives to sentencing and reducing incarceration rates.
Dalvanie Powell
4:43:34
Good afternoon.
4:43:35
I was gonna say good morning.
4:43:36
Good afternoon, Chip.
4:43:37
And nurse and members of the committee.
4:43:39
My name is Daphne Powell, and I'm the president of the United Probation Office Association.
4:43:43
I wanna thank the committee for informing me on behalf of the members of UPOA that was willing to testify on important issues impacting the future criminal justice.
4:43:52
The future criminal justice in the city of New York filed for your consideration with apparent recommendations for next fiscal year's budget.
4:43:59
Probation officers work every day to keep our city safe while giving New York is involved in the criminal justice system a second chance.
4:44:05
UPOA have members have bachelor's in master's degrees in education and work experience in social work, which we use to help our clients begin to live productive and lawful lives.
4:44:15
We are charged by the city to oversee approximately 15,000 men, woman, and youth who have been convicted of crimes and sentenced to probation instead of jail.
4:44:24
Prison and placement.
4:44:25
We when we are successful, we save the city and the state millions of dollars by diverting people from being sentenced and incarcerated.
4:44:32
We are responsible for making sure that they do not violate the terms of their probation and work with them to turn their lives around.
4:44:38
Our members of peace officers, they serve on task force, with other agencies such as US Marshalls, Drug And Force, Agencies, and NYPD.
4:44:45
We carry firearms, make arrests, and execute search forms, and arrest warrants.
4:44:49
So Despite the role we play in law enforcement, our members are considered civilians rather than law enforcement officers, which impacts our salaries and benefits.
4:44:58
Currently, we currently, we have approximately 668 probation officers, supervising probation officer serving this department of probation.
4:45:06
The vast majority of our members are women and people of color.
4:45:09
This is is a significant decrease from a decade ago.
4:45:12
Prior to the Bloomberg Administration, there were approximately 1550 probation officers working in this New York City over the past several years.
4:45:20
Staffing levels at the Department of probation have reduced by more than 50%.
4:45:24
I am also providing you with the DLP's resignation rate from January 2018 to December 2022.
4:45:31
As staffing levels have decreased, our workload has continued to increase.
4:45:35
This is important due to bill reform and raise the age.
4:45:38
Which has in which have increased the number of the clients served on probation.
4:45:42
This cannot continue to be able to perform our duties responsibilities.
4:45:45
We need more we need more support in your help.
4:45:48
In June 2023, I was invited by DCAS to testify in a public hearing to consider proposing to temporarily classify 3 1000 and non competitive competitive players under the hiring.
4:45:59
Emergency limited placement known as health program.
4:46:02
Unfortunately, we met the criteria, and I'm also providing with the notice of full year review.
4:46:06
Department probation has issues with retention and recruitment.
4:46:09
Our members are leaving for higher paying positions in the criminal justice system.
4:46:12
This includes all other law enforcement agencies New York City as well as probation departments and neighboring counties.
4:46:18
Our compensation lads far behind of the law enforcement agencies even though we worked the same population and face the same thing.
4:46:25
Just for example, based on our last contract, which expired in November 2020, the hiring rate of probation officer is is 45,0934, which 934, which is far lower than the audience salaries and NYPD DLC and other agencies.
4:46:39
Although there's a salary range for our title, the majority of our members are press at the lower end of the range with almost no opportunity to earn more to reach the top salaries.
4:46:48
Compared to other probation departments, our salaries are lowest in the much above and area including Nassau, Suffolk County, and Westchester County.
4:46:55
We we do the same work as probation officers in nearby jurisdiction and deserve the same pay.
4:46:59
We recently had the civil service examination for probation officers in August 25 2023 for the supervisor's probation officers in May 2021.
4:47:08
And there was there has not been a civil service exam for administrative probation since 2017.
4:47:13
However, our recent administration has petitioned decays for administrative probation officer exam, and finally it now begins April 3rd to 2020 to the 23rd.
4:47:22
We have begun to work with the mayor's office to address some of these changes and are hopeful that the newly appointed Department of probation commissioner will need a home's and how team will be receptive.
4:47:32
But if history is our guide, we will need the council support to to ensure that members of probation feel respected because they are the front lines as all the alternatives to sentencing at a time when we are striving to lower the population of those who are incarcerated.
4:47:47
I will appreciate the opportunity to discuss it with you in further.
4:47:51
Thank you, and I stand to answer any questions you may have now and look forward to meeting with you and your representatives in the future.
4:47:58
Thank you.