Creation of more Conservation Officers.

[John Bacon]

If the case goes to court the cost of the trial will likely exceed the fines in most cases. That is even before we take the cost of the CO into consideration.

 

I believe that CO's salaries are similar to that of OPP officers. The papers sometimes report cases of police officers earning in excess of $100k with overtime. And that is just salary. When you add support staff to the office, benefits, etc., the $175k per does not seem too far out of line. More CO's mean more bosses and admin staff who cost money but don't issue fines.

 

I don't think there is much of a chance of CO's covering their costs.

[aniceguy]

At the end of the day unless an up and coming CO wants to live in Mommys basement they need competative salaries, that will draw talented compasionate and motivated officers.

 

If you google how the Ontario Parks formula works Co's could do the same but it would mean writing tickets to compensate the salaries and that is a slippery slope too......as Quota's now come into the mix.

 

Ultimately risk assessment with a willing Minister might make a difference until then the pillage continues

[AzuluSpookd]

From what I hear, the average cop makes about 60k today(I believe OPP make even less) and fire fighters about 50K and I dont think a CO should earn anywhere near what a cop does or a firefighter for that matter. But thats just me.

 

You must be thinkin salaries in the late 1980's to early 1990's...You're WAY off in your numbers...most cops..with court pay, shift premium are making close to 90k....base salary is almost 80k...OPP's usually last to negotiate and are generally one of the highest paid....much better benefits....firefighters...well...they are way up there and I mean way up there....especially with their schedules, they can actually work another job if they choose to.

 

IMO....I think CO's should be paid just as much as those guys....they are trying to protect a resource and their enforcement numbers have steadily declined since 1992 whereas police forces have increased their numbers since that time. Doesnt make sense to me, but for less then 200 CO's in the entire province, they are doing what they can with what little they are given.

[pikehunter]

Argue all you want about salaries and wages. There is only one fact I know for sure and that is I am very highly underpaid! Wish I had become a cop 30 years ago when it was easy to do so, particularly easier too when your wife was the regional police chief's daughter's friend, boy was I ever dumb.

[lew]

....firefighters...well...they are way up there and I mean way up there....

 

When I first went on the job way back in '68 we were making $100 a week.

 

Seemed like good $$$$ back then

[Michael_Brown]

I assume that the fines collected by the CO's do not go to the MNR. They would go to the municipality where the fine was issued.

Do you think you are overpaid for the work you do? I sure most people if they knew would say you are overpaid and some would say your not paid enough....whatever you make.

 

I want to thank the CO's we have for the work that they do.

[Harrison]

I want to thank the CO's we have for the work that they do.

 

So do I Michael!

 

Some solid points and great opinions all!

 

I see where some think funding themselves with fines might be a slippery slope, but if you are not actively participating in illegal activities what would you be worried about.

Edited November 20, 2009 by Harrison

[Fish4Eyes]

Engineers in the ministry make 80k, not CO's. CO's make 40-50k. If they move on to be supervisors/managers then more.

[Guest Johnny Bass]

Engineers in the ministry make 80k, not CO's. CO's make 40-50k. If they move on to be supervisors/managers then more.

 

That sounds about right to me. And I did google cop pay and OPP pay and firefighter pay before commenting. Even what terry posted states TOP PAY used to be 70K. Now top pay is 80K. I constantly hear about how cops are underpaid and I believe it. Thats why I supported the strike.

 

Your telling me a starting CO makes $32 an hour? What do they make after 10 years? $50? Definitely over paid. I'd rather remove conservation officers altogether then and hire more Cops and OPP officers, so they can do 2 jobs. Enforce conservation laws and catch speeders, criminals and such. They are more trained to deal with the situation anyways. May be perfect for retired cops......

[basketclam]

Regarding the question of fines and where does the money go to, the MNR maintains what's called a Special Purpose Account. As I understand it, the majority of funds collected go toward conservation programs. Straight from the FWCA, here's the section that addresses the account:

 

85. (1) All amounts received by the Crown under this Act shall be held in a separate account in the Consolidated Revenue Fund, including all fines, fees and royalties paid under this Act and all proceeds from sales under this Act, including sales of things forfeited to the Crown under this Act.

 

(2) Money standing to the credit of the separate account is, for the purpose of the Financial Administration Act, money paid to Ontario for a special purpose.

 

 

(3) The Minister may direct that money be paid out of the separate account to the Minister or a person specified by the Minister if,

 

(a) the payment will be used for the conservation or management of wildlife or fish populations or the ecosystems of which those populations are a part;

 

( the payment will be used for a matter related to the activities of people as they interact with or affect wildlife or fish populations, including any matter related to safety; or

 

© the payment will be used to refund all or part of a fee or royalty under subsection 83 (2).

[irishfield]

Your telling me a starting CO makes $32 an hour? What do they make after 10 years? $50? Definitely over paid.

 

Overpaid in who's world Johnny... That doesn't go far in todays society. Do you pay a mortgage/property taxes/hydro/phone and feed a family of four, or are you still living at home letting Mom do that?

 

I'd be damned if for $32 an hour I'd be walking into the woods with a 9mm on my belt to confront some hillbilly hunting with a 30 aught 6 !

Edited November 20, 2009 by irishfield

[Headhunter]

I agree 100% Wayne! To my mind, in many cases, C.O's have a much more dangerous job than a police officer... out in the middle of now where, looking for hunters, WHO ARE OBVIOUSLY ARMED to ensure that our resources are properly managed.

Johnny, you need to live in their shoes for a while, before you can make a comment like that. To my mind, they are GROSSLY under paid!

HH

Edited November 20, 2009 by Headhunter

[AzuluSpookd]

Agreed.

 

OPP are able to enforce all fish and wildlife laws....but....that's why we have CO's

[Jer]

I see where some think funding themselves with fines might be a slippery slope, but if you are not actively participating in illegal activities what would you be worried about.

 

 

Wow, that kinda blind faith in authority is kinda scary, isn't it?

[John Bacon]

Agreed.

 

OPP are able to enforce all fish and wildlife laws....but....that's why we have CO's

 

 

Being legally allowed to enforce the laws; and it being practicle for them to enforce the laws are two different things. It is one thing for police to issue tickets for fishing without a licence; it is another thing altogether for them to have to know all of the game and fish laws on top of the traffic laws and other laws that they need to know for their day jobs.

 

Besides, if had 200+ OPP offices in the bush enforcing game and fish laws we would need to hire another 200+ cops to enforce traffic and criminal laws. Where's the savings in that?

[Jer]

Being legally allowed to enforce the laws; and it being practicle for them to enforce the laws are two different things. It is one thing for police to issue tickets for fishing without a licence; it is another thing altogether for them to have to know all of the game and fish laws on top of the traffic laws and other laws that they need to know for their day jobs.

 

Besides, if had 200+ OPP offices in the bush enforcing game and fish laws we would need to hire another 200+ cops to enforce traffic and criminal laws. Where's the savings in that?

 

 

 

...and how long until those 200 cops are sucked out of the bush and onto the street. There's more money (and PR) in traffic enforcement.

[Guest steel'n'esox]

Cant afford anymore CO's blew the wad bailing out GM and Chrysler, and the HST will also screw the taxpayers as well.

[StoneFly]

I base my answers on good info

here is a cut and paste

basic salary of $80,564

"

Re: 2008 Durham Regional Police Contract

 

Postby Tank » Sat Oct 04, 2008 11:16 pm

The Peel Regional Police rank-and-file officially accepted a new collective agreement on today, ending their unprecedented work-to-rule campaign.

 

Interim Peel Regional Police Association (PRPA) president Bruce Chapman said more than 1,600 of the association's 2,400 uniformed officers and civilian members voted on the new deal with the Peel Police Services Board (PSB). He said 87.1 per cent of uniformed officers ratified the deal, while 76.1 per cent of civilian members voted in favour.

 

The four-year deal will see wage increases of 3.21 per cent retroactive to Jan. 1, 2007, followed by 3.19 per cent in 2008, 3.12 per cent in 2009 and 3.25 per cent in 2010. It means a first-class constable in Peel will earn a basic salary of $80,564, up from a top pay of $71,441."

 

Anyone know if this is true? Im gonna Barf if so,...

[StoneFly]

Being legally allowed to enforce the laws; and it being practicle for them to enforce the laws are two different things. It is one thing for police to issue tickets for fishing without a licence; it is another thing altogether for them to have to know all of the game and fish laws on top of the traffic laws and other laws that they need to know for their day jobs.

 

Besides, if had 200+ OPP offices in the bush enforcing game and fish laws we would need to hire another 200+ cops to enforce traffic and criminal laws. Where's the savings in that?

 

How about 5-6 OPP officers handing out tickets at certain locations during the salmon run? We could have an intern bring them coffee and donuts while they write 100's of tickets for poaching, lol.

 

No Bush, no risk,..ALOT of extra $$ for the Coifers etc. CO's certainly dont do it,...they cant,..there are not nearly enough of them. I would argue however that a dozen coppers could bring in more $$ from August-October than they would otherwise,..and public safety wouldnt be threatned one bit,...they could always leave to go to an emergency....it would just be a re-routing of the $$ grab from most radar traps.

[AzuluSpookd]

Huh? What's your point, you're arguing the same thing

 

Being legally allowed to enforce the laws; and it being practicle for them to enforce the laws are two different things. It is one thing for police to issue tickets for fishing without a licence; it is another thing altogether for them to have to know all of the game and fish laws on top of the traffic laws and other laws that they need to know for their day jobs.

 

Besides, if had 200+ OPP offices in the bush enforcing game and fish laws we would need to hire another 200+ cops to enforce traffic and criminal laws. Where's the savings in that?

[Guest Johnny Bass]

Overpaid in who's world Johnny... That doesn't go far in todays society. Do you pay a mortgage/property taxes/hydro/phone and feed a family of four, or are you still living at home letting Mom do that?

 

I'd be damned if for $32 an hour I'd be walking into the woods with a 9mm on my belt to confront some hillbilly hunting with a 30 aught 6 !

 

In my world. Considering that the majority of the population is making less than half of that........And many doing work that is alot heavier. Big deal, they carry a gun.

 

Oh and I talked to a cop and the average pay is aboot 60K but they make extra money for court appearences and security gigs. Which usually adds up to alot more than 40 hours a week.

 

And you guys think a CO should make more than a cop???

 

There is a lot of money to be made catching poachers, and once they clean it up, they can go back to regular duties. At least if you see a poacher and you call the cops they will actually SHOW UP!!!

[Terry]

your cop friend must work for a poor region

 

here is a newspaper report

 

Deal reached in Toronto police contract talks

Last Updated: Thursday, December 18, 2008 | 2:11 PM ET Comments13Recommend6

CBC News

 

There's a new three-year collective agreement between the Toronto Police Service and the city, which will see a jump in salaries by about 10 per cent, making Toronto cops the best-paid officers in the province.

 

But Toronto Mayor David Miller has warned that the cost to taxpayers will be the equivalent of a two per cent tax hike.

 

Terms of the deal were released Thursday after months of discussions involving an arbitrator.

 

The Police Services Board has endorsed the deal, but Miller said the financial terms will put "significant pressure" on the city.

 

"The city of Toronto is a tough place to be a police officer. They deserve to be fairly paid," Miller told reporters at City Hall on Thursday morning.

 

"It is, however, very significant costs for the city and the Police Services Board. By 2011 the police budget in Toronto will be $1 billion. This award itself will create a pressure in next year's budget equal to about a two per cent tax hike," he said.

 

If the contract is ratified by the end of 2010, a first class constable will earn $81,249 per year, which will be $238 more than a first class constable in the Peel Regional Police force.

 

A new Toronto police officer earns about $50,000 per year.

 

 

and the link

 

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/toronto/story/200...ce.html?ref=rss

[Harrison]

Wow, that kinda blind faith in authority is kinda scary, isn't it?

 

It could be, I see your point.

 

However, I wouldn't mind being "checked" more often if it meant the resources are more protected. Would be a trade off, IMO.

[Carp]

I've always known CO's to be earning a salary in the same range as police officers and firefighters and don't have a problem with the salary they earn.

I also agree that we should have more CO's. About double the current # would be a start.

It's not about recovering the money spent on enforcement, but having some sort of enforcement in place to protect our fish and wildlife.

 

....and the rant starts !

 

I wonder how many more CO's (country wide) could be hired with the 'BILLIONS' spent on a faulty, useless gun registry ?

Thank the Liberal party for, once again, wasting 'BILLIONS' of our tax dollars to buy votes.

Did I mention the 'BILLIONS' wasted on a faulty gun registry while it has done nothing to reduce gun crimes.

Don't forget the 'hundreds of millions' (that we know of) that the Liberal party laundered to friends and family.

I guess that's O.K. because they consider it "charitable contributions" as well as helping out those in need ........of GREED !!!

 

Remember what the Liberal party has done to us next time you vote. Don't turn a blind eye, as many others have.

I'm not a fan of politicians in general, but have a special hate brewing inside of me for the people who are responsible for the gun registry and theft of our money.

There are many politicians who should be in prison right now, but use our weak legal system and it's loopholes to continue stealing from us. In my opinion, the colour red in political circles represents nothing good. Broken liberal promises don't make them worthy of the elected positions they hold. Yes, they lie to get elected, then steal our money before we figure out the mistake we made.

 

.....and the apology. Sorry for the rant.

 

 

Hire more CO's, raise fines and enforce prison terms for serious crimes to the fish and wildlife act, especially repeat offenders.

Third time offenders should be banned from hunting and fishing activities for life. No exceptions. Including guiding, commercial fishing, etc.

[Jonny]

Toronto Police Services Salaries and Benefits

 

Toronto Police cadets earn a base pay of $45,042.34. A 4th Class Constable earns a base pay of $50,057.71. A 3rd Class Constable earns a base pay of $57,211.20. A 2nd Class Constable earns a base pay of $64,364.69. A 1st Class Constable earns a base salary of $71.522.91.

 

Benefits include: Health plan, Dental plan, life insurance, credit union, pension plan, paid vacation, education reimbursement, employee and family assistance program.

 

http://www.legal-criminal-justice-schools....nto-Police.html

 

Add rank and the salary goes up from there.

 

Conservation and environmental officers' salaries in Ontario range from $45,000.00 - $68,000.00 annually.

 

Source - Fleming College