Probation officers deserve more pay
Imagine being a Suffolk County law enforcement officer who makes markedly less than her county counterparts, yet we are the highest educated [“Don’t compare pay of teachers to cops,” Letters, Nov. 9].
Suffolk County probation officers need a bachelor’s degree to take the Civil Service test. Probation officers are thus usually two to four years older than the youngest of most other officers: police, deputy sheriff and corrections. Yet probation officers are the lowest paid, and nearly 60% are female; female officers are a lower percentage of other departments.
In a 2019 Newsday article, Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone called the gender pay gap “offensive” and said, “We clearly still need to do more.” Probation officers weren’t even mentioned among law enforcement personnel.
We perform a vital role in the community and should be recognized and compensated for it. We understand each department has its own function. But there is no reason why probation officers should be earning substantially less than other county law enforcement officers.
Why is the law enforcement agency with the highest percentage of female officers, which requires the highest education requirement for hiring, the lowest paid?
— Rosemarie Molinelli, Coram
The writer has been a Suffolk County probation officer for 29 years.
Robocall law pushes the right buttons
Bravo, Gov. Kathy Hochul, for signing two bills to legislate robocall telemarketers [“Hochul signs bills to take on robocallers,” News, Nov. 9]. The law will get telecommunication companies to screen and block unsolicited robocalls and prohibit fake-number calls, with noncompliant offenders fined.
The “effective immediately” aspect may have been the reason my husband and I received no robocalls from telemarketers the next day. This had been our No. 1 hang-up. Hochul made a good call.
— Susan Marie Davniero, Lindenhurst
