Legal Question in Employment Law in Florida

I am a Police Officer with a large department (3500 +officers) in Florida. I have been employed for 17 years and have been promoted to the rank of Sergeant within the last 3 years. My department is civil service and the Sheriff is an elected official. The Fraternal Order of Police is our collective bargaining union.
During my initial hiring, a high school diploma was the basic requirement for employment. During that time, you could be promoted up to the rank of Captain (civil service position) without having a college degree. Over the last several years, the Sheriff changed the requirements for promotion. An officer now needs at least 12 years of service to become a Sergeant without a degree. You can be promoted to Sergeant at 8 years if you have a 2 year or more degree, or 4 years as an officer with a 4 year degree. To be promoted to the rank of Lieutenant you must have a 4 year degree, Period! I can have 20 years on the job but I am unable to take the promotional exam for Lieutenant.
We currently have several Lieutenants who have taken the promotional exam several years ago prior to the Sheriff�s policy and were promoted to their current rank of Lieutenant. They have no degree but were �grandfathered� in. The Sheriff regularly pulls from this resource and promotes these Lieutenants to the rank of Assistant Chief (This is not a Civil Service position but instead an appointment by the Sheriff).
My question is, is the policy that the Sheriff has created by forcing civil service employees to work full time and now must work even more to an acquire a degree to advance in their current employment legal? Can the Sheriff just change the promotional requirements as he sees fit? I have spoken to the Sheriff and Under Sheriff. They both stated that there will be no exceptions and I need a degree even though they keep promoting people without a degree. Our union president states that the Sheriff can change the policy as he sees fit. I know what the law states when it defines �discrimination� so my case doesn�t fit, but this seems like nothing more to me than educational discrimination to me. What good is to be "civil service?" Thank you... Florida Cop..

Asked on 9/07/09, 4:59 pm

Alan Wagner Wagner, McLaughlin & Whittemore P.A.

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You are best served by discussing this matter with the FOP. They are in a better position to answer these questions and handle the matter.

Answered on 9/07/09, 8:22 pm

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