Police Officer - Lateral ($40,000 Incentive) (20691888)

San Francisco/Peninsula

Job Type

Full-Time

Close Date

Until filled

Salary

$132,036.00-$160,491.00 Annually

Additional Questionnaires

Supplemental

About Menlo Park

Menlo Park is a city of beautiful, tree-lined neighborhoods and active commercial districts. Located conveniently between the major metropolitan areas of San Francisco and San Jose, Menlo Park is home to just approximately 32,000 residents in its 19 square miles. The stunning natural surroundings of the city afford views of the San Francisco Bay to the east and the Pacific Coastal Range to the west. Menlo Park's climate is moderate to warm, with an average of 265 sunny days a year.

Menlo Park's residents reflect a range of backgrounds and interests who tend to be well educated and actively engaged in community life. Excellent public and private schools serve its many young families, while residents of all ages enjoy the City's numerous parks and recreational facilities. The City's close proximity to Stanford University and Menlo College provide a multitude of academic, cultural and athletic event opportunities. The arts and leisure activities of the major urban areas of San Francisco and San Jose are close by. These and many other amenities contribute to Menlo Park's outstanding quality of life.

Located in the heart of Menlo Park is a downtown featuring unique and upscale shops, restaurants and entertainment, including the Guild Theatre. Set in a pleasant, pedestrian-oriented atmosphere, Menlo Park's downtown area attracts locals and visitors alike. Known worldwide as the "Capital of Venture Capital," Menlo Park hosts many venture capital firms and is well situated to benefit from and help shape new technologies and markets originating from the Silicon Valley. Additionally, the city is host to numerous technology and healthcare related companies, including such major employers as Meta (formerly Facebook), SRI International, Pacific Biosciences, Exponent, Grail and Personalis.

Menlo Park is a General Law city operating under the Council-Manager form of government. The City Council appoints the City Manager and City Attorney, as well as members of a variety of advisory commissions and committees. The municipal government is organized into six operating departments, including Administrative Services, City Manager's Office, Community Development, Library and Community Services, Police, and Public Works. The City is comprised of approximately 300 employees.

In addition to its many attributes, Menlo Park has one of the most beautiful civic center campuses in the Bay Area. Heritage trees, a running fountain, and a duck pond surround City Hall. The campus also includes a nine-acre park, recreation facilities, and the Menlo Park Library. These civic amenities make the campus a noted destination for residents, local employees, and visitors. Conveniently located, the campus is a short walk to our downtown area with food and shopping destinations, as well as the Menlo Park Caltrain Station.

Learn more about joining our team on the City's Human Resources webpage.

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Location

701 Laurel St. Menlo Park, 94025

Description

The City of Menlo Park is currently accepting applications for lateral Police Officers that are motivated, well-trained professionals who can meet the challenge of a fast paced, multi-tasking law enforcement environment.

The Hiring and Retention Incentive Program pays new, eligible Police Officers who are Lateral Police Officers up to a total amount of $40,000 (See details under benefits).

The Menlo Park Police department is an operation in which the patrol officers enjoy communicating and building relationships with individuals within the community. We embrace a true community connection and commitment with participants on all sides. Rather than designating certain officers to focus on solving community problems, Menlo Park will charge all police personnel with proactive community policing responsibilities. We ask our officers to seek innovative solutions to local problems, respond to citizen complaints of violations and provide excellent customer service.

A small agency, such as the Menlo Park Police Department, will enable you to attain a breadth of experience and exposure through which to advance your career in numerous ways. We are seeking individuals who are enticed by our vision and will bring high energy, innovation, self-motivation and passion to their chosen profession. The City of Menlo Park recognizes the value of continuing education and increased knowledge acquired through personal and professional development of its' workforce and allows employees to further their education goals. Accordingly, the City is committed to providing support for learning opportunities that directly and indirectly assist employees in achieving their personal and professional learning goals.

Additionally, major thoroughfares coursing through our fully developed community make traffic management a vital duty of all patrol officers. Overall, the department has strong opportunities for specialty assignments, including: K9, investigations, narcotics enforcement, traffic, SWAT/HNT and POP. Patrol teams enjoy a rotating 4/12 plan or a fixed 4/10 schedule in specialty assignments.

The City realizes the diversity of the community and therefore upon approval, the City pays officers a bilingual stipend. Our officers continually strive to be the best and achieve high standards; they receive a 5% incentive for achieving their Intermediate POST certificate and 10% incentive for achieving their advanced certificate. Starting September 1, 2024, Menlo Park police officers with at least one year of local service are eligible for longevity pay based on their total years as a California peace officer. Credited time includes all years served in Menlo Park plus half of any years served at other California agencies.

For more information, please review the MOU here.

The City has new desktop and laptop computers in place for employees. The City already has Crime Analysis and Traffic Analysis software systems in place. A new handheld citations system for traffic has recently been launched. The City also implemented a citywide GIS system, document imaging system, and Intranet, which are available to all staff members. Additionally, we have placed laptops in all patrol cars in order to facilitate timely report writing and response to calls for service.

Ideal Candidate

We are seeking well-qualified lateral Police Officers who are enthusiastic, community-oriented team players with the skills and ability to interact and deal effectively with a population that is both culturally and socio-economically diverse. We pride ourselves in our staff, individuals who exhibit excellent interpersonal skills, and a sincere desire to make a difference. Come discover why so many officers develop their careers here and retire from our department.

Job requirements:

• Graduation from an accredited Police Officer Standards and Training (POST) basic academy (or California POST approved equivalent).
• Passed probation and worked at least one full year in patrol at a California law enforcement agency
• Obtained a valid Basic POST Certificate in California
• Graduation from high school or equivalent. (Additional education at the college level is preferred)
• Valid California Driver License
• POST standard physical requirements

In accordance with Government Code Section 1031, effective January 1, 2023, peace officers must be legally authorized to work in the United States under federal law. There are no specific citizenship requirements. Review the following website for additional information: https://post.ca.gov/Peace-Officer-Citizenship-Requirements-FAQs.

Applicants must include the most recent POST Certification (Basic, Intermediate, or Advanced) as an attachment to their application.

Benefits

The City offers an excellent benefit package consisting of:

• Health Insurance: City contribution up to $3,039 per month towards a Cafeteria Plan which can be used to purchase medical insurance and participate in a flexible spending account for health care and/or child care reimbursement
• Dental: City-paid coverage for employee and dependents
• Vision: City-paid coverage for employee and dependents
• Vacation: 96 - 176 hours of vacation leave accrual each year, depending on length of service.
• Sick Leave: 8 hours per month
• Holidays: 13 holidays
• Retirement: CalPERS Classic Members 3% @ 55; New Members 2.7% @ 57 formula.
• Uniform Allowance: $1,040 annually
• Deferred Compensation: Voluntary participation in City Plans
• Life Insurance: City-paid policy equal to 1.5 times regular annual wage
• Long Term Disability: City-paid coverage
• A City-paid Caltrain GoPass. The Menlo Park campus is centrally located within walking distance from Caltrain and downtown Menlo Park.
• A City-paid BayPass. This pilot program offers employees unlimited travel for both work and personal trips on 25 Bay Area transit agencies that use the Clipper card.
• A transportation allowance program provides employees with $1.50 per day when they walk, bicycle or carpool to work at least once per week.
• Employees are provided with access to an on-site gym at no cost

For additional benefit information, visit www.menlopark.gov and review the City of Menlo Park and Police Officers' Association Memorandum of Understanding.

Hiring and Retention Incentive Program for Lateral Police Officers

This incentive will be provided in the following incremental payments upon successful completion of the stated milestone:

• $10,000 is provided upon acceptance of a final offer of employment with the City of Menlo Park (payable in the first pay period of hire);
• $10,000 is provided upon successfully passing probation and completing one year of service;
• $5,000 is provided upon successfully passing probation and completing two years of service;
• $5,000 is provided upon successfully passing probation and completing three years of service;
• $10,000 is provided upon successfully passing probation and completing four years of service.
• Payments are made as part of the next paycheck in accordance with the Payroll Schedule following completion of the milestone above.

Note: For purposes of this agreement, a "year of service" is defined as 2080 or 2184 regularly scheduled work hours, depending on the assigned schedule, including paid absences of less than two consecutive weeks due to holidays, vacation time, compensatory time off, or sick leave. Unpaid absences, including absences due to extended leave or disciplinary action (e.g., suspension) will not be counted towards the time required for the identified incentive payments.

Eligibility Criteria

For purposes of this program, a Lateral Police Officer is defined as a candidate for employment who has already completed the requirements and attained a valid Basic POST Certificate in California (i.e., an individual currently or recently employed as a full-time 830.1 peace officer appointed to an eligible POST participating agency who has satisfactorily completed both (a) the Basic Course requirement, and (b) the employing agency's probationary period of not less than 12 months). The candidate must be a new hire to the position of Lateral Police Officer and must not have prior work history in a sworn position with the City of Menlo Park. The candidate must begin employment with the City of Menlo Park before August 31, 2027.

The candidate must be a new hire to the position of Lateral Police Officer and must not have prior work history in a sworn position with the City of Menlo Park.

Special Instructions

You must attach your POST Basic, Intermediate, or Advanced Certificate to your application. You may include other documentation, such as a resume, cover letter, or other certifications, along with your POST certificate. However, CalOpps will only accept one attachment (multiple pages okay) up to 2MB.

Applications will be reviewed for neatness, accuracy, and relevant training, education, and work experience. Only complete applications, including supplemental questionnaire responses and a POST certificate, will be reviewed and considered.

Applications will be reviewed periodically. Those qualified applicants best matching the current needs of the City will be invited to the testing process, which will consist of an oral board interview.

If successful in the testing process, candidates may be invited to subsequent phases of the selection process, including Chief/Command Staff interview, thorough background investigation, fingerprinting, polygraph examination, psychological screening and medical evaluation. Candidates must be successful in all phases of the selection process to be hired as a Police Officer.

The City of Menlo Park is an Equal Opportunity Employer. It is the policy of the City of Menlo Park not to discriminate against all qualified applicants or employees. We will make reasonable efforts in the selection process to accommodate persons with disabilities. Please contact Human Resources at hr@menlopark.gov prior to the closing date for accommodation requests.

In accordance with the Immigration Reform and Control Act, all potential employees are required to provide proof of U.S. Citizenship or authorization to work in the United States. The City will not sponsor applicants for work visas.