Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, February 13, 1993 TAG: 9302130023
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
BOWERS SAYS WORK FORCE DIVERSITY NEEDED
Roanoke needs a more culturally diverse work force in all municipal departments - not just in the Police Department, Mayor David Bowers says."The city has a responsibility to make its work force more representative of its population," Bowers said Friday.
Bowers said he agrees with President Clinton's belief that government ought to reflect the diversity within the country and communities.
Speaking at graduation ceremonies for the most diverse class in the city Police Academy's history, Bowers said the city's affirmative action program is producing results.
The academy's 21-member graduating class includes three white women, one Asian man, seven black men, one Hispanic man and eight white men. The class also includes one Vinton police officer, a white man.
The Police Department has a special need for a representative work force because of its role in enforcing laws and working with different groups, Bowers said.
With the addition of Friday's class, the city will have 18 black officers, 10 women and two Asians.
The number of black officers has doubled from nine two years ago. Blacks now comprise 7.3 percent of the city's 245 police officers.
The Rev. Alfred Prunty, co-chairman of the city's Community Relations Task Force, said Friday he is encouraged by the city's efforts to recruit more black officers.
"We are making progress and I hope it continues," Prunty said. "We will continue to monitor it."
The task force was appointed two years ago to help ease racial tensions between police and the black community.
Prunty said he hopes the city will eventually have a police force that is 25 percent black, matching the percentage of black residents in the city's population.
"We hope to reach that level over time," he said. "That would represent real progress."
Bowers said the city has become more diverse in the past three decades and the municipal work force should begin to reflect that.
"Over time, we need to be representative of the people in our work force and have women in the Fire Department, for example," he said.
The city has no women firefighters. A committee has been appointed to study ways to recruit women.
Blacks hold 24 percent of the city's 1850 jobs, which approximates the black population percentage. But they are concentrated in maintenance and service jobs.
Women hold 30 percent of the municipal jobs, but make up 45 percent of the labor force in the Roanoke metropolitan area.
George Snead, director of public safety, said Friday's graduating class was one of the academy's best. Scholastically, he said, the recruits recorded an average score of almost 95 percent on their class work.
The new officers will have to ride with veteran officers for several months on patrols before they are allowed to ride alone.
Lt. W.L. Althoff, head of the academy, said the recruits have received training in all aspects of police work. They also have undergone a rigorous background check, he said.
Bowers praised police for helping to reduce crime, citing a 16 percent decrease in major offenses in the past year. He said the community-oriented policing effort has helped reduce crime in the Lincoln Terrace and Hurt Park housing communities.