Spoken like someone who has never laid it on the line for someone else. While Im sure paper cuts hurt they are not equal to Blown out shoulders,Knees & backs. Not to mention increased rate of heart attacks, Strokes, diabetes. Look at how many personnel are in SJPD/SJFD & you will see for yourself how severly understaffed they both are compared to any other city its size. The reasoning is simple , They do more with less.If you think it easy then put your money where your mouth is and take the test. first the written, then the manipulative , then the Psychological, then the Medical, not to mention multiple interviews, then the academy, then probation. Everybody talks a big game but few have the guts to jump in and give it a shot

Im seriously confused? How can revenue return , when we are only building low income homes and NOT bringing any new jobs to san Jose?The only ones making any money are Greeds developer buddies

HAHAHAHA! You are absolutely correct , Cops & Firefighters do not give up! They are NOT made that way. Part of the reason San Jose was one of the “Safest Big Cities”  was because of this trait.Now you will get to see it first hand. So even though Im Positive that you , Sam have never Been in a real fight. KNUCKLE UP , because a fight is what you , the Mayor & rest of Council have coming. People like you make me sick, you sit back and make judgements/decisions off of what you have read. But have you ever worked in the field, ever had to separate 2 drunks,respond to a drowning,let a parent know that their child was never coming home? No , I didnt think so! The Men/women of public safety are what made San Jose what it once was , So sleeptight knowing more employees are leaving for greener more appreciative pastures. those who choose to stay , will continue todo the best they can , which is seriously more than you deserve

Beautifully stated! But the truth is , this pathetic Mayor and council could care less.Lets see when all is said and done , How will history judge the people who single handedly destroyed San Jose.

Prescient,  Sounds like you are describing P Constant? 

What about the officers that have legit injuries?  How do you purpose the city deals with them?

Don’t forget the “half of the unfunded liability,” or potentially 8% on top of the 16%, plus the promise that if I’m injured on the job I will be taken care of.  In other words, pretty much say, “Never mind…” to Measure B.

Guess we’re not going to be letting it go any time soon.

Your animosity is understandable; in fact, much of what outrages you has been outraging good cops for decades. Though the police department has been statistically very successful avoiding many hiring pitfalls (alcoholism, dishonesty, etc.), identifying and weeding out the scammer-personality has proved impossible. With job benefits, the unfortunate reality is that employees who possess a victim-mentality, extreme selfishness, or low character will exploit all within reach, even those protections (like early disability) that should be considered sacred. This truism applies to all occupations.

The police department has been long plagued by a minority of employees who fake, or grossly exaggerate the impact of, on-the-job injuries, so much so that fifteen years ago a couple of detectives were assigned to monitor those considered most suspect. The investigators found what was expected, on two fronts: first, the cops were faking it; second, the city lacked the moral fiber to follow through and do for its police department and public the right thing, which was to terminate the offenders. Instead, city management tried to offload the messy business onto the district attorney, who politely told them to clean their own dirty laundry. Result: not a single one of these scheming cheats was fired (all eventually retired with a paycheck 20% larger than their honest peers).

As demonstrated so clearly by Chuck Reed, this city has always preferred to conduct a smear campaign or political lynching—using lies and gross generalizations—against it entire workforce than to stand up for what is right, or trust its own management team to competently prosecute a case against an employee who has actually broken the rules. Every patrol team knows what it’s like to carry an empty beat because some self-centered schemer has discovered the tax-free wonders of the soft-tissue injury, the unnecessary surgery, or the coronary condition made worse by cigarettes and alcohol. Because of schemers, good cops work harder, face added danger, and now, get slandered.

And all this time I thought police officers and fire fighters were public employees…

There is no example in reality that fits your scenario. 

1. If a police officer retires on a disability, he/she can not be a cop at another agency.  He could, however, become a City Council member.
2. Ten years of service would earn a police officer 25% of his/her highest year’s salary, not exactly a living wage.
3. Police officers are not eligible for a retirement medical benefit until they have 20 years of service.
4. The retirement medical benefit is not free.  Employees put approximately ten percent of each pay check toward this benefit.  And once they retire, the premiums are still thousands of dollars a year.

While you are at it,  why don’t you lead the way and propose that the city council members take a 16% pay cut spread out over the next four years. I know you can not change your PERS retirement contributions so why dont you just take a pay cut like the rest of us and show us you too are willing to do your part.

Nobody is talking about San Jose’s public employees, we’re talking about the police and fire department. Imagine, start work at 30 years old retire on a fake disability pension at 40 and have free medical for life. Then go and get a job at the Sheriffs department. What a scam.