Final justice - W.E.B. Griffin [14]
It listed the results of the most recent examination for promotion to sergeant. Two thousand seven hundred and eighty-two police officers--corporals, detectives, and patrolmen with at least two years' service--had taken the examination. Passing the examination and actually getting promoted meant a fourteen percent boost in basic pay for patrolmen, and a four percent boost for corporals and detectives.
A substantial percentage of detectives earned so much in overtime pay that taking the examination, passing it, and then actually getting promoted to sergeant--who put in far less overtime--would severely reduce their take-home pay. Many detectives took the sergeant's examination only relatively late in their careers, as a necessary step to promotion to lieutenant and captain, because retirement pay is based on rank.
The examination had two parts, written and oral. Originally, there had been only a written examination, but there had been protests that the written examination was "culturally biased" and an equally important oral examination had been added to the selection process.
Passing the written portion of the examination was a prerequisite to taking the oral portion of the examination, and a little more than five hundred examinees had failed to pass the written and been eliminated from consideration.
Oral examinations had begun a month after the results of the written were published, and had stretched out over four months.
Six hundred eighty-four patrolmen, corporals, and detectives had passed the oral portion of the sergeant's examination and were certified to be eligible for promotion.
That was not at all the same thing as saying that all those who were eligible for promotion would be promoted. Only fifty-seven of the men on The List--less than ten percent--would be "immediately"--within a week or a month--promoted. A number of factors, but primarily the city budget, determined how many eligibles would be promoted and when. The eligibles who weren't promoted "immediately" would have to wait until vacancies occurred--for example, when a sergeant was retired or promoted.
What that translated to mean was that if an individual ranked in the top 100, or maybe 125, on The List, he or she stood a good chance of getting promoted. Anyone ranking below 125 would almost certainly have to forget being promoted until The List "expired"--usually after two years-- and a new sergeant's examination was announced and held.
The first name on The List in Hollaran's hand--the examinee who had scored highest--was Payne, Matthew M., Payroll No. 231047, Special Operations.
"Why am I not surprised?" Hollaran asked, smiling, and then added, unctuously, "Detective Payne is a splendid young officer, of whom the department generally, and his godfather specifically, can be justifiably proud."
"Go to hell, Frank," Detective Payne's godfather said, and then added, "What he needs is a couple of years--more than a couple: three, four years--in uniform, in a district."
"You really didn't think Matt would ask for a district assignment? In uniform?" Hollaran asked, chuckling.
When Police Commissioner Mariani had announced the latest examination for promotion to sergeant, he had added a new twist, which, on the advice of other senior police officials and personnel experts, he believed would be good for morale. The five top-ranking examinees would be permitted to submit their first three choices of post-promotion assignment, one of which would be guaranteed.
Deputy Commissioner Coughlin had at first thought it wasn't a bad idea. And then he had realized it was almost certainly going to apply to Matthew M. Payne, and that changed things. Matty's scoring first--which meant that there would be no excuse not to give him the assignment he had chosen-- made it even worse.
"I had lunch with him last Thursday," Coughlin said. "I told him, all things considered, that he stood a pretty good chance of placing high enough on The List. . . ."
"How prescient of you,