MONTEGO BAY, St James — Members of the Diaspora living in the United States of America, in particular New York, are being urged to look at employment opportunities within the New York Police Department (NYPD).

The call comes from president of the Jamaican American Law Enforcement Organization (JAMLEO) Danae McFarlane, who is attending the 10th Biennial Jamaica Diaspora Conference now underway in Montego Bay, St James. She is a member of the NYPD.

“My job at this conference is to bring awareness that the NYPD is hiring. We have a cut-off date of July 28th and if you are eligible to apply for the uniform title — that is the title of police officer — I say, apply,” she told the Jamaica Observer.

According to its website, the NYPD “is the largest and one of the oldest municipal police departments in the United States, with approximately 36,000 officers and 19,000 civilian employees”. The annual salary for police officers starts at US$58,580 (about $9 million) and moves up to US$121,589 (about $18.8 million) after five-and-a-half years on the job, not including overtime and pay for working at night. When those are included, police officers with five-and-a-half years of service may potentially earn more than US$126,531 (about $19.7 million) per year.

According to McFarlane, opportunities are not limited to uniform positions.

“I implore all Jamaicans living in the United States who are citizens that do qualify to come and take the jobs,” she urged.

Categories of civilian jobs listed on the NYPD website include: Traffic Enforcement Agent, Police Communications Technician, School Safety Agent, School Crossing Guard, Auxiliary Police, Police Administrative Aide and Evidence and Property Control Specialist.

“I am here today because of my police commissioner, who extended it and said you can go and represent the NYPD and represent our organisation here in Jamaica at this Global Diaspora Conference,” McFarlane explained.

She said 1,145 Jamaicans are currently on the NYPD’s staff and she is hoping to increase that number.

“Come and join the big happy family in the NYPD. There is so much more to the NYPD than what you will see and perceive on TV,” she appealed.

McFarlane, who is a 16-year veteran of the force, has risen through the ranks to the position of sergeant. She has worked in a variety of areas including the Special Victims Unit and Intelligence.

She described the experience as rewarding and said it could be the same for those who seek to come on-board.

“It’s not just a job, it’s a career, a beautiful career,” she said.

In addition to talking about job opportunities within the NYPD, part of her role at the conference is building JAMLEO’s image and visibility among members of the diaspora.

“They don’t know that we exist. There are people in New York who don’t know that there is a Jamaican fraternity in the NYPD and we try to push the awareness,” she explained.

McFarlane said JAMLEO is a fraternal group that exists within the NYPD, comprising members of Jamaican descent, those born in Jamaica, and some who are simply friends of the Jamaican people.

“It is a melting pot of every culture and creed, everything you could think of, it exists in the NYPD and our job is to bring awareness to that,” she said.