:: wikimiki.org ::
| RCMP Recruiting Historical Perceptive |
RCMP Recruiting Historical PerceptiveDue to an aging force, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) is actively recruiting to continue meeting Canada's policing needs. Society changes every decade, and so do the RCMP recruiting qualifications. Right now, depending of the province, about 15 to 20 times more people apply to the RCMP than the target hiring goal. Therefore, the RCMP has more leverage in selecting appropriate candidates. Salary, social status, and traditions are all among reasons why so many are willing to be hired as an RCMP constable.
In the 1980s and early 1990s the RCMP implemented hiring goals to increase the ratio of members of specific races, ethnicities, and sex. At that time, the force make-up was almost totally composed of white males. The new hiring initiatives, coupled with low overall hiring due to the small number of retirement and the weak Canadian economy, rendered the possibilities of joining the force rather small. The minority hiring initiative along with a court decision that allows an RCMP officer to wear a turban while working generated a great deal of controversy. The RCMP never managed to hire as many women as men. (One key reason being that only 20 per cent of applicants are women). As for races and ethnicities, the force managed to increase the number of visible minorities but not in the same relation as the make-up in Canadian society.
The actions by the RCMP were, in general, wrongly perceived by applicants and RCMP officers themselves. It was once believed that the RCMP lowers the passing marks or the cut-off lines of their initial eligibility test in order to hire females and visible minorities, however this is not the case. Upon writing the initial entrance exam (RPAB), applicants are requested to indicate their race and gender. This is then used to compete applicants of the same minority against each other rather than being drowned out by the multitude of white male applicants.
A common complaint among Aboriginal members of the RCMP is Racial Geographical predetermination. Commonly known as 'Ghetto-ization'. The RCMP is currently the police service of the majority of First Nations within Canada. These First Nations now have a choice of where they obtain their police service from, placing the RCMP in a position where they must now compete to retain these policing contracts. One of the demands of most First Nations is for the majority of the police officers to be of Native descent. While the RCMP has drastically increased the number of aboriginal members within the force, it is caught in a position where to satisfy demand from its clients, it must continually have aboriginal members for its First Nations contracts. With a small percentage of the force still being made up of Aboriginal members this group is kept in high rotation for Aboriginal Policing contracts. These positions are known as some of the most demanding positions, are usually isolated, and are certainly some of the most stressful. Aboriginal members report not being offered many of the same opportunities as their non-native counterparts, as they are constantly pressured to return to Aboriginal Policing within the force.
Age
In the early to mid 1980s all the way to now, the RCMP started to hire older individuals. Members starting their careers in their 30s are now commonplace; those in their 40s are numerous while those doing so in their 50s are rare exceptions.
Prior to the early 1980s, the RCMP was aiming to recruit new members aged from 19 to about 25. The practice was relatively customary of those days, and also grounded on three precise beliefs from the RCMP. First, policing could not be the second career of an individual. Second, young men were more moldable than older individuals to the police subculture. Third, criminal activity was linked to adulthood. By hiring young adults, the RCMP secured more chances that those individuals would have a crime free background.
Citizenship
Today, applicants are required to be Canadian citizens. In the late 1950s, both Canadian and British citizens were able to join the ranks.
Education
In the past century, partly due to industrialization, the level of education continued to increase in Canadian society. Educational increment along with the complexity of the RCMP officer's daily tasks and duties rendered formal education more important in the eye of the force. The population as a whole is now more educated, so are citizens who join the RCMP. In the past, the requirement had been a 7th-grade or 10th-grade completion. Now, the RCMP formally requires a high school diploma in order to meet the basic hiring qualifications, although many cadets are now community college graduates or have degrees from Canadian universities. In certain cases, some are even master's degree holders. A debate can be generated about the RCMP hiring policies. The force itself has never formally expressed its position on higher education and hires citizens with a variety education. On one side, the basic requirements still call for a Canadian secondary school diploma and on the other, RCMP recruiters are clearly mentioning that the force is looking for higher level education. Although many candidates who are refused are university graduates, some cadets at RCMP depot have nothing more than a high school diploma with some working experience.
Height and weight
Another recruiting change that happened in the last 30 years is the removal of height and weight requirements. Before the 1970s, the RCMP hired only men of a certain height and weight. Often, a "good" candidate weighed over 200 pounds (90 kg) and stood at or above six feet (180 cm). Today, the RCMP still maintains physical requirements as a part of the recruiting process; however, the requirement is a timed cardiovascular and strength exercise task rather than specific absolute body measurements. The requirements simulate the physical demands placed on the body of actual RCMP officers facing an immediate physical confrontation.
Marital status
In the 1960s, new members had to be single at recruitment, and keep that civil status for the first five years of service. This, however, is no longer the case.
Political influence
Many have argued that in the 1960s political influence was present if not prominent in the recruiting process. Today, it appears that such practice is only part of history.
Posting
Ever since the late 1980s, the RCMP has its recruits under contract mentioning that members could be called to serve anywhere in the country at the force's discretion.
In prior years leading to the early 1980s, some RCMP recruits were signing special contract where the force had to post them in specific regions where they could spend their complete careers.
Gender
Some qualifications required by the RCMP have remained the same over the years while others have changed. In 1974 the RCMP hired about 20 women in order to create a female troop. They were sent to the RCMP Training Academy for training. In the past, many police forces had employed women, especially for civilian duties. This time however, it was different. The RCMP hired women to carry the exact same duties as their male counterparts. It has been a major change in the RCMP and the police overall.
Application Process
Information Session
Applicants must first attend a two-hour information session usually held in the main cities of a province. The information session is usually conducted by a member of the recruiting section and is in place so that applicants are fully aware of what becoming and being a member of the RCMP is all about.
RPAB (RCM Police Aptitude Battery)
After attending the information session applicants are scheduled to write their initial entrance exam, the RPAB, which consists of the RPAT and the SFPQ. Prior to 2004 the test was called the RPAT (RCM Police Aptitude Test), and did not include the second component called the SFPQ (Six-Factor Personality Questionnaire). The RPAT is designed to evaluate an applicant's potential aptitude for police work. The test measures seven skills that are essential in completing the duties of a police officer. These skills include Composition (Spelling, Grammar, and Vocabulary), Comprehension, Memory, Judgement, Observation, Logic, and Computation.
The second test of the RPAB is the SFPQ, which measures an applicant's conscientiousness, a concept not measured by the RPAT. This measure of conscientiousness is being introduced due to its close relationship with concepts such as honesty, integrity and commitment. Conscientiousness is defined as behavior governed by or conforming to the dictates of conscience; principled. The SFPQ has 108 questions and takes approximately 20 to 30 minutes to complete. Each question is written as a statement about which a person is asked to what extent they agree or disagree.
An applicant’s RPAB aggregate score is based on both the RPAT score and the SFPQ’s conscientiousness score. The total score will be comprised of roughly 60% RPAT and 40% SFPQ scores. Applicants will receive written feedback on their performance for both tests including a score for each of the seven components of the RPAT.
Applicants can score anywhere from 0.00 to 5.00 on the RPAT, and 0 to 500 on the RPAB aggregate. A score of 3.20 on the RPAT is the minimum pass mark, although in most divisions this mark is not considered competitive. In Alberta for example, a mark of at least 3.80 on the RPAT is required in order to proceed in the process, if an applicant is a white male.
If one fails the RPAB or is required to re-write it, he or she must wait a minimum of 365 days from the date the applicant last wrote.
The Package
After receiving your RPAB marks, the applicant is placed on the IRL (Initial Ranking List). This is a list that ranks applicants based on their scores on the RPAB. Applicants with the highest scores get the first available packages. The package consists of several forms that the applicant must fill out, as well as instructions on what the applicant must obtain before proceeding to interview, i.e. First Aid & CPR Certificate, typing certificate, high school transcripts, passport photos. Applicants are usually given about 1 calendar month to hand the package in to their recruiting office.
PARE (Physical Abilities Requirement Evaluation)
The Physical Abilities Requirement Evaluation (PARE) is a job related physical ability test which is designed to simulate a critical incident where a police officer chases, controls and apprehends a suspect. The test was developed by exercise scientists and is based on extensive research, including a thorough job analysis. One may not take the PARE without first receiving medical clearance from a doctor.
The PARE test costs approximately $40-$60, payable by the applicant. Upon passing, a PARE certificate will be issued and is valid for six months. If the certificate expires during the recruiting process, the applicant will be required to be re-tested at the expense of the RCMP. Should candidates fail to maintain PARE certification, enrolment/engagement will be refused.
Suitability & Security Interview
After sucessfully passing the PARE test the applicant will be contacted to attend two interviews, usually held on the same day. The first interview, suitability, is a behaviour-based interview designed to have the applicant give previous examples from his or her life that relate to one of several categories the interviewer is looking for. This interview can last from 2-3 hours.
The Security Interview, usually conducted immediately after the suitability interview, is an other 1-2 hour interview designed to detect any criminal activity or behaviours that would be a detriment to the applicant's chosen career.
Medical Clearance
All applicants are required to go through several medical test including: Chest X-rays, ECG, Urinalysis, blood tests, hearing test, dental exam, optical exam, and a full physical/medical with an RCMP physician. Applicants may be deferred/rejected at this point for an illness or condition that may prevent the applicant from performing the regular duties during training at the RCMP's Training Academy.
Background Investigation
The security papers the applicant filled out when he/she received the package will now be verified. Normally the background investigator will both call and visit places of employment up to 10 years back, places of residence up to 10 years back, friends, family, relatives, co-workers, supervisors and landlords. The applicant will also have a full credit check, and criminal records check, among other things. This part of the process normally takes anywhere from 3-8 months to complete, depending on the extensivity of the applicant's background (i.e. how many places the applicant has lived or worked).
The background investigation is generally the last step in the process. After the investigation is done the applicant receives a conditional letter of enrollment. After signing and returning the letter, and after passing another PARE test, the applicant is then assigned a troop number and "Depot date", that is, the date the applicant is to report to the training academy.
Polygraph Examination
As of July 2005, a polygraph test is given to all new applicants, not affecting those already in the process. It is stated that the polygraph acts as a "truth verifier" rather than a "lie detector" by the RCMP recruiters, to ease the nervousness of the applicants.
External links
- [http://www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/recruiting/index_e.htm Official RCMP Recruiting website]
Recruiting
Royal Canadian Mounted Policeright
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP or Mounties; French, Gendarmerie royale du Canada, GRC) is both the federal police force and the national police of Canada. The RCMP acts as the federal (national) police for all of Canada, enforcing certain federal laws. It also has contracts with Canada's three territories and eight of its provinces to serve as their provincial/territorial police force. Most of Canada's provinces, while constitutionally responsible for law and order, prefer to sub-contract policing to this professional national force that consequently operates under their direction in regard to provincial and municipal law enforcement. The exceptions are Ontario, Quebec, and parts of Newfoundland and Labrador, which have their own provincial police forces. Additionally, many towns and cities throughout Canada also contract the RCMP to serve as their municipal police force. The RCMP is the largest police force in Canada; as of April 2005, the RCMP had an on-strength establishment of 22,557 personnel.
The RCMP was created as the North West Mounted Police (NWMP) in 1873, given the "Royal" title in 1904, becoming the Royal North West Mounted Police (RNWMP), and renamed to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Force in 1920 when the RNWMP was merged with the Dominion Police. Among themselves, the Mounties universally refer to their organization as "The Force" and members of the force are referred to as "Members."
It has been theorized that the international popularity of the force lies in it being representative of a symbol of the balance of civilization and the frontier. That is, the RCMP is a police force that operates in the seemingly wild frontier, but operates under the behest of a central, if somewhat removed, bureaucratic authority back in the settled regions. In addition, the existence of the RCMP in Canada and the complete lack of any analogous organization in the Western United States during the frontier period has often been cited as both a cause and effect of cultural differences between Canada and the United States.
History
United States
The RCMP was created as the North West Mounted Police (NWMP) on May 23, 1873 by Sir John A. Macdonald, the first prime minister of Canada, with the intent of bringing law and order to (and asserting Canadian sovereignty over) the North-West Territories (which then included modern day Alberta, Nunavut and Saskatchewan). This need was particularly urgent with reports of American whisky traders, in particular those of Fort Whoop-Up, causing trouble in the region, culminating in the Cypress Hills Massacre. The force was initially to be called the North West Mounted Rifles, but that was rejected as too military in nature, Macdonald fearing that this could antagonize both the First Nations and the Americans. Acting on a suggestion in his cabinet, Macdonald had the force wear red uniforms. The force was organized like a British cavalry regiment and still maintains some of the traditions of those units, like the well known, Canadian Musical Ride, to this day.
Initial Activities
The initial force, commanded by Colonel George Arthur French, set out from Fort Dufferin Manitoba on July 8th 1874 on a march to what is now Alberta. The group comprised of 22 officers, 287 men-called Constables and Sub-Constables - 310 horses, 67 wagons, 114 ox-carts, 18 yoke of oxen, 50 cows and 40 calves. An account of the journey was recorded in diary of Henri Julien, an artist from the Canadian Illustrated News, who accompanied the expedition .
Modern historians have theorized that the failure of the 1874 "March West" would not have ended the Canadian federal government's vision of settling the country's western plains, but would have delayed it for many years. In particular, a failure would have encouraged the Canadian Pacific Railway to seek a route for its transcontinental railway that went through the well-mapped and partially settled valley of the North Saskatchewan River, touching on Prince Albert, Battleford and Edmonton. There would have been no economic reason for the creation of cities like Brandon, Regina, Moose Jaw, Swift Current, Medicine Hat and Calgary. That, in turn, would have tempted American expansionists to make a play for the Canadian prairies' flat, empty southern regions. In effect, the history of Canada would have been radically different had French and his men failed.
The NWMP's early activities included containing the whisky trade and enforcing agreements with the First Nations peoples. To that end, the commanding officer of the force arranged to be sworn in as a justice of the peace, which allowed for magisterial authority in the Mounties' jurisdiction. In the early years, the force's dedication to enforcing the law on the First Nations peoples' behalf impressed them enough to encourage good relations. In the Summer of 1876 Sitting Bull and thousands of Sioux were fleeing the US Military to southern Saskatchewan, and James Morrow Walsh of the NWMP was charged with maintaining control in the large Sioux settlement at Wood Mountain. Walsh and Sitting Bull became good friends, and the peace at Wood Mountain was maintained. In 1885, the NWMP helped to quell the North-West Rebellion led by Louis Riel.
Klondike Gold Rush and after
Louis Riel
In 1894, concerned about the influx of American miners and the liquor trade, the Canadian government sent inspector Charles Constantine to report on conditions in the Yukon. Constantine correctly forecast a coming gold rush and urgently recommended sending of a force to enforce Canadian sovereignty and collect customs duties. He returned the following year with a force of 20 men. The force distinguished itself during the Klondike gold rush (started in 1896) under the command of Constantine and his successor in 1898, the more famous Sam Steele. The NWMP made the Klondike gold rush one of the most peaceful and orderly such affairs in history. The NWMP not only enforced criminal law, but also collected customs duties, established a number of rules such as the "ton of goods" requirement for prospectors to enter the Yukon to avoid another famine, mandatory boat inspections for those wanting to travel the Yukon River, and created the "Blue ticket" used to expel undesirables from the Klondike. The Mounties did tolerate certain illegal activities such as gambling and prostitution, which they would have been unable to control in any case. Also, the force did not succeed in its attempt to establish order and Canadian sovereignty in Skagway, Alaska at the head of the Lynn Canal, and instead created the customs post at the summit of the Chilkoot Pass. Ironically, the force's dissolution was being discussed around that time in Parliament, but the Mounties' conduct so impressed the prospectors during the gold rush that the force became famous around the world and its survival was ensured.
In 1903 jurisdiction was extended to the Arctic coast, Alberta and Saskatchewan in 1905, and in 1912 to northern Manitoba.
During the Boer War, the force raised the Canadian Mounted Rifles, mostly from NWMP members, for service in South Africa. For the CMR's distinguished service there, Edward VII honoured the NWMP by changing the name to the Royal North West Mounted Police (RNWMP) on June 24, 1904.
In 1919 the RNWMP was used to repress the Winnipeg General Strike, when officers fired into a crowd of strikers, killing two and causing injuries to thirty others.
Creation of the RCMP
Winnipeg General Strike
On February 1, 1920 the RNWMP was merged with the Dominion Police and was renamed the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, with responsibility for federal law enforcement in all provinces and territories.
In 1935 the RCMP, collaborating with the Regina city police, crushed the On-to-Ottawa Trek, which had been organized to call attention to the need for decent treatment of the unemployed men in the relief camps.
Evolving responsibilities
In the 1920s, the RCMP assumed responsibility for national counter-intelligence, which they retained for decades. However, by the late 1970s, it was discovered the force had in the course of their intelligence duties engaged in crimes such as burning a barn and stealing documents from the separatist Parti Québécois, among other abuses. This led to the [http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=A1ARTA0004009 McDonald Commission - Royal Commission of Inquiry into Certain Activities of the RCMP], better known as the "McDonald Commission", named after the presiding judge, Mr Justice David Cargill McDonald (died 1996). The Commission recommended that the force's intelligences duties be removed in favour of the creation of a separate intelligence agency, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS).
In 1932 men and vessels of the Preventive Service, National Revenue, are absorbed , creating the RCMP Marine Section The acquisition of the RCMP schooner St. Roch facilitated the first effective patrol of Canada's Arctic territory. It was the first vessel to navigate the Northwest Passage from west to east (1940-1942), the first to navigate the Passage in one season (1944), and the first to circumnavigate North America (1950).
In 1993 the RCMP's counter-terrorism duties, performed by the Special Emergency Response Team (SERT), were transferred to the Canadian Armed Forces, creating a new unit called Joint Task Force Two (JTF2). JTF2 inherited some equipment and SERT's former training base near Ottawa.
Modern Era
Ottawa
Ottawa
On March 3, 2005, four RCMP officers were shot dead during an operation to recover stolen property and investigate a possible marijuana grow-op in Rochfort Bridge, Alberta. Shooter Jim Roszko, 46, then shot and killed himself. It was the single worst multiple killing of RCMP officers since the Northwest Rebellion. One of the four Mounties killed had been on the job for only seventeen days. The victims were:
- Const. Lionide (Leo) Nicholas Johnston, 34 - Mayerthorpe Detachment
- Const. Anthony Fitzgerald Orion Gordon, 28 - Whitecourt Town Detachment General Policing and Highway Patrol
- Const. Brock Warren Myrol, 29 - Mayerthorpe Detachment
- Const. Peter Christopher Schiemann, 25 - Mayerthorpe Detachment General Policing and Highway Patrol
See [http://www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/2005/03/04/myrol-rcmp050304.html CBC].
The RCMP in wartime
The Boer War
During the Boer War, members of the North West Mounted Police were given leaves of absence to fight with the 2nd Battalion, Canadian Mounted Rifles and the Lord Strathcona's Horse.
World War I
During the First World War the Royal North West Mounted Police (RNWMP) conducted border patrols, surveillance of enemy aliens, and enforcement of national security regulations within Canada. However, RNWMP officers also served overseas. On 6 August, 1914, a squadron of volunteers from the RNWMP was formed to serve with the Canadian Light Horse in France. In 1918, two more squadrons were raised, A Squadron for service in France and Flanders and B Squadron for service in Siberia
World War II
In 1939, No. 1 Provost Company (RCMP), Canadian Provost Corps, was raised for service in Europe. The unit served with distinction throughout the Second World War.
Honours
Second World War
Although it is a police force, the RCMP has the status of a regiment of dragoons, and as such is entitled to wear battle honours for its war service as well as carry a guidon. It was awarded this status in 1921, with its first guidon presented in 1935. As a regiment, the RCMP mounted the King's Life Guard at Horse Guards Parade in 1937 leading up to the coronation of King George VI.
- Battle Honours
- Early Honours: Northwest Canada 1885, South Africa 1900-02
- The Great War: France and Flanders 1918, Siberia 1918-19
- The Second World War: Europe, 1939-45
- Honorary Distinction
- The badge of the Canadian Provost Corps1
1. Presented 21 Sep. 1957 at a Parliament Hill ceremony for contributions to the Corps during the Second World War.
History of the Uniform
The RCMP are famous for their distinctive Red Serge, a scarlet ceremonial uniform with a stetson hat with a wide flat brim which is worn on special occasions, and the Musical Ride (a ceremony in which officers showcase their horse riding skills and uniform in the execution of a variety of intricate figures and cavalry drills with music). On normal duties, the RCMP uses standard police methods, equipment, and uniforms. Horses are no longer used operationally by any unit.
drill
The Red Serge tunic that identified initially the NWMP, and later the RNWMP and RCMP, is of the standard British military pattern. The NWMP was originally kitted out from militia stores, resulting initially in several different styles of tunic, although the style later became standardized. This style was used to both to emphasize the British nature of the force and to differentiate it from the blue American military uniforms. The blue shoulder epaulets were added in the 1920's after it was granted its "Royal" status from the British Soverign for its service in World War I, replacing gold-trimmed scarlet straps from the earlier uniforms. Currently, RCMP personnel under the rank of Inspector wear blue "gorget" patches on the collar, while officers from Inspector to Commissioner have solid blue collars, along with blue pointed sleeve cuffs.
Initially the NWMP wore buff trousers. Later dark blue trousers with yellow-gold strapping (stripes) were adopted. Members of the NWMP were known to exchange kit with US cavalry units along the border and it is suggested that this was the initial source for the trousers; however, blue trousers were considered early on, although with a white strap. Dark blue with yellow-gold strapping is another British cavalry tradition, and Canadian city police forces frequently wear dark blue trousers with a narrow red strap of infantry tradition.
The wide flat brim stetson hat was not adopted officially until about 1904. Although the NWMP contingent at Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee wore the stetson, it was an unofficial item of dress. The primary official head dress at the time was the white British foreign service helmet, also known as a pith helmet. This was not particularly practical as headdress in the Canadian west, and members wore a stetson type hat on patrol and around camp. Sam Steele is often credited with introducing the stetson-type hat, and when he left the force to command Lord Strathcona's Horse and took the regiment to South Africa he also adopted the stetson for this unit.
Black riding boots were later changed to the modern brown style. The original crossbelts were later changed to the brown Sam Browne type currently worn. The brown colour of the boots and belt worn with the Red Serge come from the individual member applying numerous coats of polish, often during their time in training at Depot Division.
Sidearms are standard now, but were often not worn in the early years.
The everyday uniform consists of a grey shirt with dark blue tie, dark blue trousers with gold strapping, regular patrol boots called "ankle boots", regular duty equipment, and a regular policeman's style cap. A blue "Gore-Tex" open-collar jacket is worn by Constables, Corporals, Sergeants, and Staff Sergeants while a dark blue jacket, with a white shirt in place of the grey shirt, is worn by Sergeants Major, certain Non-Commissioned Officers (NCOs) usually involved in aspects of recruit training or media relations, and all officers from Inspector to Commissioner. Short sleeved shirts are worn in the summer by all members with Constables and NCOs not wearing the tie, and Officers wearing the tie year round. Winter dress consists of a long-sleeved shirt and tie for all members and, depending on the climate of the detachment area, heavier boots, jackets and a fur cap are worn.
Organization
The RCMP divides the country into divisions for command purposes. In general, each division is coterminous with a province (e.g. C Division is Quebec). The province of Ontario, however, is divided into two divisions, A Division (Ottawa) and O Division (rest of the province). There is one additional division - Depot Division, which is the RCMP Training Academy. The RCMP headquarters are located in Ottawa, Ontario.
During 1960s and 1970s, the RCMP had Special Constables in its ranks. Unlike regular members, their duties were to police the airports and, in certain Canadian provinces, the court houses. This program was abolished in the 1980s or 1990s.
In the early years of policing in Northern Canada, and well into the 1950's, local native people were hired by the RCMP as Special Constables and were employed as guides and to source and care for sled dog teams. Many of these former Special Constables still reside in the North to this day and were are still involved in regimental funtions of the RCMP, especially with Canada's declaration that 2005 be recognized as the "Year of the Veteran".
Ranks
The rank system of the RCMP illustrates their origin as a paramilitary force. The insigina was based upon the Canadian army of the time, which is almost identical to that of the current British Army. Higher ranks have been increased over the years since the formation of the force, whereas the rank of inspector, which was initally a subaltern, is now a field officer level, the lower officer ranks having been dropped. With the military introducing the warrant officer, the RCMP non-commissioned officers were maintained using the older military style. The ranks of the RCMP, in English and French with their insignia, are:
The ranks of Inspector and higher are commissioned ranks and are appointed by the House of Commons. Depending on the dress, badges are worn on the shoulder as slip-ons, on shoulder boards, or directly on the epaulettes. The lower ranks are non-commissioned officers and the insignia continues to be based on British army patterns. Since 1990, the non-commissioned officers’ rank insignia has been embroidered on the epaulette slip-ons. Non-commissioned rank badges are worn on the right sleeve of the scarlet/blue tunic and blue jacket. The Constables wear no rank insignia. There are also Special Constables, Auxiliary Constables, and Students who wear identifying insignia.
The current number in each rank is identified in brackets. Several provinces have indicated increasing the numbers. Number of others are listed below:
- Special Constables 82
- Civilian Members 2,605
- Public Servants 3,867
- Total 22,557
The RCMP in popular culture
1990, Canada Day 1999.]]
The Mounties have been immortalized as symbols of Canadian culture in numerous Hollywood movies, which often feature the image of the Mountie as square-jawed, stoic, and polite, and with the motto that the Mountie "always gets his man." (In actual fact, the RCMP's motto is Maintiens le droit, French for "Maintain the Right". The Hollywood motto dervies from a comment by the Montana newspaper, the Fort Benton Record: "They fetch their man every time." .) A famous example is the radio and television series, Sergeant Preston of the Yukon. Dudley Do-Right (of The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show) is a 1960s example of the comic aspect of the Mountie myth. The Broadway musical and Hollywood movie Rose Marie is a 1930s example of its romantic side. Canadians also poke fun at the RCMP with Sergeant Renfrew and his faithful dog Cuddles in various sketches produced by the Royal Canadian Air Farce comedy troupe. The British have also exploited the myth: the BBC television series Monty Python's Flying Circus featured a group of mounties singing the chorus in The Lumberjack Song in the famous lumberjack sketch. Ren and Stimpy also parodied the Mounties in the episode Royal Canadian Kilted Yaksmen. More recently, the 1994-98 TV series Due South paired a Mountie with a streetwise American detective cleaning up the streets of Chicago, Illinois, mainly deriving its entertainment from the perceived differences in attitude between these two countries' police forces.
See also
- RCMP Training Academy
- RCMP Recruiting
Provicial Police Forces fulfilling the duties of the RCMP in their respective provinces:
- Ontario Provincial Police
- Sûreté du Québec
- Royal Newfoundland Constabulary
External links
- [http://www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca The official website of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police]
- [http://www.rcmpmuseum.com RCMP Museum]
References
- [http://www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/html/organi_e.htm Organization of the RCMP]
- [http://www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/history/marchwest_e.htm Diary of Commissioner George Arthur French] August 20, 2005
- [http://www.ourheritage.net/julien_pages/Julien1.html The Diary of Henri Julien]
- [http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1109976610322&call_pageid=968332188492&col=968793972154&DPL=IvsNDS%2f7ChAX The Toronto Star] March 5, 2005 "Force's legacy endures".
Category:Law enforcement agencies of Canada
Category:Canadian intelligence agencies
Category:Cavalry
-
Category:Canadian federal departments and agencies
Category:Canadian regiments
Category:History of Canada
ja:王立カナダ騎馬警察
Society
:For the Brian Yuzna film, see Society (film). For the song by the California punk band Pennywise, see Society (song).
A society is a group of beings distinguishable from other groups by mutual interests, characteristic relationships, shared institutions, ranking and a common culture. In political science, the term is often used to mean the amalgamation of all voluntary human relationships, generally in contrast to the State, an institution of legal aggression.
:"I mean by it [State] that summation of privileges and dominating positions which are brought into being by extra-economic power... I mean by Society, the totality of concepts of all purely natural relations and institutions between man and man..." - Franz Oppenheimer, The State.[http://www.opp.uni-wuppertal.de/oppenheimer/st/state0.htm]
The social sciences use the term society to mean a group of people that form a semi-closed social system, in which most interactions are with other individuals belonging to the group. More abstractly, a society is defined as a network of relationships between social entities. A society is also sometimes defined as an interdependent community, but the sociologist Tonnies sought to draw a contrast between society and community. An important component of society is social structure in which roles and ranks are given (school[cliques and labels], work[boss, admin], and so on)
Etymology
The English word society emerged in the 14th century; derived from the French société. The French word, in turn, had its origin in the Latin societas, a "friendly association with others", from socius meaning "companion, associate, comrade or business partner". Thus the meaning of society is closely related to what is considered to be social. Implicit in the meaning of society is that its members share some mutual concern or interest, a common objective or common characteristics. As such, society is often used as synonymous with the collective citizenry of a country as directed through national institutions concerned with civic welfare.
Organization of society
Human societies are often organized according to their primary means of subsistence: social scientists identify hunter-gatherer societies, nomadic pastoral societies, horticulturalist or simple farming societies, and intensive agricultural societies, also called civilizations. Some consider Industrial and Post-Industrial societies to be qualitatively different from traditional agricultural societies.
One Common theme for societies in general is that societies serve to aid individuals in a time of crisis; historically, when an individual in some community requires aid, for example at birth, death, sickness, or disaster, like-minded members of that community will rally others in that society to render aid, in some form, whether the aid is symbolic, linguistic, physical, mental, emotional, financial, medical, religious, etc. Cetain societies can also put down, and scapegoat other members of the society. Many societies will also distribute largess, at the behest of some individual or some larger group of people. This type of generosity can be seen in all known cultures; typically, prestige or other cultural factor accrues to the generous individual or group.
Some societies will bestow a status on some individual or larger group of people, when that individual or group performs an admired or desired action; This type of recognition is bestowed by members of that society on the individual or larger group in the form of sosubliminal messageme name, or title, or dress, or monetary reward, etc. Males especially are susceptible to this type of action and subsequent reward, even at the risk of their lives. Action by some individual or larger group in behalf of some ideal of their culture is seen in all societies. Even subsistence-based societies exhibit the characteristics of community action, generosity, and shared risk/reward, in common with other more technology-based civilizations.
Societies can also be organized according to their political structure: in order of increasing size and complexity, there are band societies, tribes, chiefdoms, and state societies, with varying degrees of political power, depending on the what cultural geographical, historical environments that these societies have to contend with. Thus, when a society exists at the same time as other societies at the same level of technology and culture, but is also isolated geographically, that society is more likely to survive than an equivalent society which is prey to others which can encroach on their resources. See the history article for examples. A society which is not able to offer an effective response to other societies which may be in competition with them will usually be subsumed into the culture of the competing society. See the technology article for examples.
Shared belief or common goal
Peoples of many nations united by common political and cultural traditions, beliefs, or values are sometimes also said to be a society (for example: Judeo-Christian, Eastern, Western, etc). When used in this context, the term is being used as a means of contrasting two or more "societies" whose representative members represent alternative conflicting and competing worldviews.
Also, some academic, learned and scholarly societies and associations, such as the American Society of Mathematics, describe themselves as societies. In the United Kingdom these are normally non-profit making and have charitable status. In science they range in size to include national scientific societies including the Royal Society to regional natural history societies. Academic societies may have interest in a wide range of subjects, including the arts, humanities and science.
In the United States and France, the term "society" is used in commerce to denote a partnership between investors or to start a business. In the United Kingdom, partnerships are not called societies but cooperatives or mutuals are often known as societies (such as friendly societies and building societies).
Ontology
As a related note, there is still an ongoing debate in sociological and anthropological circles if there exists an entity we could call society. Some Marxist theorists, like Louis Althusser, Ernesto Laclau and Slavoj Zizek, argued that society is nothing more than an effect of the ruling ideology of a certain class system, and shouldn't be used as a sociological notion. Marx's concept of society as the sum total of social relations among members of a community contrasts with interpretations from the perspective of methodological individualism where society is simply the sum total of individuals in a territory.
See also
- Social
- Social relations
- Sociology
- Social theory
- Social class
- Social security
References
[http://www.askoxford.com/concise_oed/society Definition of Society] from the OED.
- [http://core.ecu.edu/soci/juskaa/SOCI2110/Lectures/Lect1 Lecture notes on "Defining Society"] from East Carolina University.
- [http://www.wsu.edu:8001/vcwsu/commons/topics/culture/glossary/society.html Learning Commons - What is Culture ? - Glossary Item - Society]
- Raymond Williams, "Society", in: Williams, Key Words: A Vocabulary of Culture and Society. Fontana, 1976.
Category:Society
Category:Sociology
ja:社会
ko:사회
nb:Samfunn
simple:Society
zh-min-nan:Siā-hōe
Decade:For other uses of the term, see decade (disambiguation).
This is a list of decades which have articles with more information about them. See also centuries and history.
During the 20th Century and continuing today it became popular to look at that century's decades as historical entities in themselves. Particular trends, styles, and attitudes would be associated with and define different decades of the century, and thus the names of the decades themselves have come to be synonymous with them. Some commentators suggest that this phenomenon will not continue into the 21st Century with its decades.
ja:10年紀
simple:Decade
Category:Decades
QualificationThe term qualification may refer to:
- Certification such as product qualification
- A process of deciding the running order in many auto racing events
ProvinceThis article is about political regions. See geologic province for geological meanings.
Province is a name for a subnational entity that is a secondary level of government in most countries. In some countries an alternative term is used, such as state (in Australia, India and the United States), prefecture (in Japan), län (in Sweden), or region (in France and in Italy where provincia is a tertiary form of government, akin to a county). Various parts of the British Empire had the title of Province such as the Province of Canada and the Province of South Australia (to distinguish it from the penal 'colonies' elsewhere in Australia). In Germany and Austria, the same sense of historical and cultural unity on a less-than-national scale is expressed as Land, the common name for states of Germany and states of Austria.
In many federations (particularly those that are in fact confederations), the province or state is not clearly subordinate to the national or "central" government. Rather, it is considered to be sovereign in regard to its particular set of constitutional functions. The central and provincial governmental functions, or areas of jurisdiction, are identified in a constitution. Those that are not specifically identified in the constitution are called "residual powers". These residual powers lie at the provincial (or state) level in a decentralised federal system (such as the United States and Australia) whereas in a centralised federal system they are retained at the federal level (as in Canada). Nevertheless, some of the enumerated powers can also be very significant. For example, Canadian provinces are sovereign in regard to such important matters as law and order, property, civil rights, education, social welfare, medical services and even taxation.
The evolution of federations has created an inevitable tug-of-war between concepts of federal supremacy versus "states' rights". The historic division of responsibility in federal constitutions is inevitably subject to multiple overlaps. For example, when central governments, responsible for "foreign affairs", enter into international agreements in areas where the state or province is sovereign, such as the environment or health standards, agreements made at the national level can create jurisdictional overlap and conflicting laws. This overlap creates the potential for internal disputes that lead to constitutional amendments and judicial decisions that significantly change the balance of powers.
The word provincia was introduced by the Romans, who divided their empire into provinciae. The word is thought to have originated from the Latin word provincia (zone of influence), which is turn is thought to have derived from pro ("in front") and vincia ("linked").
In France, the expression en province still tends to mean "outside of the region of Paris". (The same expression is used in Peru, where en provincias means "outside of the city of Lima".) Prior to the French Revolution, France consisted of various governments (such as Ile-de-France, built around the early Capetian royal demesne) some of which were considered as provinces, although the term would be used colloquially to describes lands as small as a manor (châtellenie). Mostly, the Grands Gouvernements, generally former medieval feudal principalities (or agglomerates of such), were the most commonly referred to as provinces. Today, the expression is sometimes replaced with en région, as that term is now officially used for the secondary level of government.
In historical terms, Fernand Braudel has depicted the European provinces—built up of numerous small regions called by the French pays or by the Swiss cantons, each with a local cultural identity and focused upon a market town—as the political unit of optimum size in pre-industrial Early Modern Europe and asks, "was the province not its inhabitants' true 'fatherland'?" (The Perspective of the World 1984, p. 284) Even centrally organized France, an early nation-state, could collapse into autonomous provincial worlds under pressure, such as the sustained crisis of the Wars of Religion, 1562—1598.
For 19th and 20th-century historians, "centralized government" had been taken as a symptom of modernity and political maturity in the rise of Europe. Then, in the late 20th century, as a European Union drew the nation-states closer together, centripetal forces seemed to be moving towards a more flexible system composed of more localized, provincial governing entities under the European umbrella. Spain after Franco is a State of Autonomies, formally unitary, but in fact functioning as a federation of Autonomous Communities, each one with different powers. (see Politics of Spain). While Serbia, the rump of the former Yugoslavia, fought the separatists in the province of Kosovo, at the same time the UK, under the political principle of "devolution" established local parliaments in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland (1998). Strong local nationalisms surfaced or developed in Cornwall, Languedoc, Catalonia, Lombardy, Corsica and Flanders, and east of Europe in Abkhasia, Chechnya and Kurdistan.
Current provinces
Not all "second-level" polities are termed provinces. In Arab countries the secondary level of government, called a muhfazah, is usually translated as a governorate. This term is also used for the historic Russian guberniyas. Compare oblast. In Poland, the equivalent of province is województwo, often translated as voivodeship.
In Peru, provinces are a tertiary unit of government, as the country is divided into twenty-five regions, which are then subdivided into 194 provinces.
There are also provinces in New Zealand, but the country is not seen as a "federal" country. However, the provinces do have a few duties like collecting rates and each province has its own Health Board and District Prisons Board.
Some provinces are as large and populous as nations. The most populous province is Henan, China, pop. 93,000,000. Also very populous are several other Chinese provinces, as well as Punjab, Pakistan, pop. 85,000,000.
The largest provinces by area are Xinjiang, China (1,600,000 sq. km) and Quebec, Canada (1,500,000 sq. km).
The term governorate is widely used in Arab countries to describe an administrative unit; it translates the Arabic word muhafazah. Some governorates combine more than one wilaya; others closely follow traditional boundaries inherited from the Ottoman Empire's vilayet system.
Provinces and polities translated "province"
Historical provinces
Ancient and medieval/feudal provinces
- pharaonic : see nome (Egypt)
- in Achaemenid Persia (and probably before in Media), again after conquest and further extension by Alexander the Great, and in various (mainly the larger) hellenistic successor states : see satrapy
- Provinces of the Roman empire
- in (later) Byzantium : see exarchate, theme
- the gau (a county) in the Frankish (Carolingian) 're-founded' Holy Roman Empire
- the emirate? in the (Arab-ruled) caliphate and subsequent sultanates
- the daruğa ('direction'), in the Tartar Khanate of Khazan (but there were five!)
- the subah in the Indian mughal empire
- In the Habsburg territories, the traditional provinces are partly expressed in the Länder of 19th-century Austria-Hungary.
- The Ottoman Empire's provinces had various types of governors (generally a pasha), but mostly styled vali, hence the predominant term vilayet, generally subdivided (often in beyliks), sometimes grouped under a governor-general (styled beylerbey).
- The former provinces of the Ottoman Empire
Modern post-feudal provinces
- The former Province of Canada (1840-1867)
- The former provinces of France
- The former provinces of Ireland
- The former provinces of Japan
- The former Province of South Australia (now an Australian state)
- The former provinces of Sweden
- The former Republic of the Seven United Provinces (The Netherlands)
- The former United Provinces of Central America
Category:Subnational entities
-
__NOTOC__
ko:도 (행정 구역)
ja:省
simple:Province
th:จังหวัด
SalaryA salary is a form of periodic payment from an employer to an employee, which is specified in an employment contract.
While 'wage' and 'salary' are often used interchangeably, 'salary' refers in particular to payment associated with a position over a fixed period of time, such as per week, per month, or per year. A manager or other person with oversight responsibilities (commonly referred to as a 'white-collar worker') would be more likely to draw a salary which does not vary with hours worked (also meaning that she would not receive overtime pay). A labourer or 'blue-collar worker' would take wages (usually paid weekly, biweekly, or monthly), based upon the actual hours worked.
From the point of view of running a business, salary can also be viewed as the cost of acquiring human resources for running operations, and is then termed personnel expense or salary expense. In accounting, salaries are recorded in payroll accounts.
Etymology
'Salary' derives from the Middle English salaire, from the Latin word salarium, a payment made in salt (sal) or for salt, from salarius meaning 'pertaining to salt.'
History
While there is no first pay stub documenting the first work-for-pay exhange, the first salaried work would have required a human society advanced enough to have a barter system to allow work to be exchanged for goods. More significantly, it presupposes the existance of organized employers --perhaps a government or a religious body--that would facilitate work-for-hire exchanges on a regular enough basis to constitute salaried work. From this, most infer that the first salary would have been paid in a village or city during the Neolithic Revolution, sometime between 10,000 BC and 1,000 BC.
By the time of the Hebrew Book of Ezra (550 BC to 450 BC), accepting salt from a person was synonymous with drawing sustenance, taking pay, or being in that person's service. Depending on the translation of [http://bible.cc/ezra/4-14.htm Ezra 4:14], the servants of King Artaxerxes I of Persia explain their loyalty variously as "because we are salted with the salt of the palace" or "because we have maintenance from the king" or "because we are responsible to the king."
Similarly, the Roman word salarium linked employment, salt and soldiers, but the exact link is unclear. The least common theory is that the word soldier itself comes from the Latin sal dare (to give salt). Alternatively, the Roman historian Pliny the Elder stated as an aside in his Natural History's discussion of sea water, that "[I]n Rome. . .the soldier's pay was originally salt and the word salary derives from it. . ." [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/L/Roman/Texts/Pliny_the_Elder/31
- .html Plinius Naturalis Historia XXXI.] Others note that soldier more likely derives from the
solidus (coin), with which soldiers were known to have been paid, and maintain instead that the salarium was either an allowance [http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=salary for the purchase of salt] or the price of having soldiers [http://www.salt.org.il/arch.html conquer salt supplies] and [http://www.salt.org.il/turkey.html guard the Salt Roads] (Via Salarium) that led to Rome.
Regardless of the exact connection, the salarium paid to Roman soldiers has defined a form work-for-hire ever since in the Western world, and gave rise to such expressions as "being worth one's salt."
Yet within the Roman Empire or (later) medieval and pre-industrial Europe and its merchantile colonies, salaried employment appears to have been relatively rare and mostly limited to government service. More commonly, servitude either received no pay, as with slavery, serfdom, and indentured servitude, or received only fraction of what was produced, as with sharecropping. Other common alternative models of work included self- or co-operative employment, as with artisan guilds, or communal work and ownership, as with medieval universities and monasteries.
Even many of the jobs initially created by the Commercial Revolution in the years from 1520 to 1650 and later during Industrialisation in the 1700s and 1800s would not have been salaried, but, to the extent they were paid as employees, probably paid an hourly or daily wage or paid per unit produced (also called piece work). In corporations of this time, such as the several East India Companies many managers would have been compensated as owner-shareholders even as the current idea of the salaried manager began to emerge.
From 1870 to 1930, the Second Industrial Revolution gave rise to the modern business corporation powered by railroads, electricity and the telegraph and telephone. This era saw the widespread emergence of a class of salaried executives and administrators who served the new, large-scale enterprises being created. New managerial jobs leant themselves to salaried employment, in part because the effort and output of "office work" were hard to measure hourly or piecewise, and in part because they did not necessarily draw remuneration from share ownership. As Japan rapidly industrialized in the 1900s, the idea of office work was novel enough that a new Japanese word (salaryman), was coined to describe those who performed it, and their remuneration.
In the 20th century, the rise of the service economy made salaried employment even more common in developed countries, where the relative share of industrial production jobs declined, and the share of executive, administrative, computer, marketing, and creative jobs--all of which tended to be salaried--increased.
The idea of a salary continues to evolve as part of a system of all the combined rewards that employers offer to employees. Salary (also now known as fixed pay) is coming to be seen as part of a system which includes variable pay (such as bonuses, incentives, and commissions), benefits and perquisites (or perks), and various other tools which help employers link rewards to an employee's measured performance.
Salaries in the US
In the United States, the distinction between periodic salaries (which could be paid regardless of hours worked) and hourly wages (meeting a minimum wage test and providing for overtime) was first codified by the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938. At that time, five categories were identified as being "exempt" from minimum wage and overtime protections, and therefore salariable. In 1991, some computer workers were added as a sixth category. The tests for all six categories were revised effective August 23, 2004.
The six categories of salaried workers exempt from overtime provisions are: (1) Executive Employees, who hire, fire and direct others; (2) Administrative Employees, exercising discretion as part of office work; (3) Learned Professional Employees, such as doctors, lawyers, professors; (4) Creative Professional Employees in an artistic field; (5) Computer Employees, who must meet certain threshold tests; and (6) Outside Sales Employees, who must work away from an employer's place of business. Some of the 2004 exemption tests depend on being paid a weekly salary of greater than $455, even though no hourly minimum wage is required or maximum number of hours worked is established.
See also
- Wages
- Compensation of employees
- Labour power
External links
- [http://www.hays.com.au/salary/ Hays Salary Survey], Australia
- [http://www.michaelpage.com.au/controller?sectionid=2&subsectionid=69 Michael Page International Salary surveys], Australia
- [http://www.payscale.com/salary-survey/ PayScale], International
- [http://www.wageindicator.org Wage Indicator], International
- [http://swz.salary.com/csalarywizard/layoutscripts/cswzl_newsearch.asp Salary Wizard Canada], Canada
- [http://www40.statcan.ca/l01/ind01/l3_2621_238.htm Statistics Canada], Canada
- [http://www.salaryexpert.com SalaryExpert], Canada & United States
- [http://www.reed.co.uk/salaryCalculator.aspx Salary Calculator], United Kingdom
- [http://www.salary.com Salary.com], United States
- [http://www.whatisthepay.com WhatIsThePay.com], United States
- [http://bls.gov/bls/blswage.htm U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics], United States
Category:Human resources management
ja:給与
Social statusSocial status is the "standing", the honour or prestige attached to one's position in society. Note that social status is influenced by social position, but one can have several social positions, but only one social status.
In modern societies, occupation is usually thought of as the main dimension of status, but even in modern societies other memberships or affiliations (such as ethnic group, religion, gender, voluntary associations, fandom, hobby) can have an influence. A doctor will have higher status than a factory worker, for instance, but in some societies a white Anglo-Saxon Protestant doctor will have higher status than an immigrant doctor of minority religion.
In pre-modern societies, status differentiation is widely varied. In some cases it can be quite rigid, such as with the Indian caste system. In other cases, status is of relatively little importance or may not exist at all, as is true with some Hunter-Gatherer societies such as the Khoisan, some Indigenous Australian societies, and other non-stratified societies. In these cases, status is limited to specific personal relationships. For example, a !Kung man is expected to take his mother-in-law (his wife's mother) quite seriously; but the mother-in-law has no "status" over anyone but her son-in-law--and only then in certain contexts.
Status is a key idea in social stratification. Max Weber distinguishes status from social class, but some contemporary empirical sociologists fuse the two ideas into "Socio-Economic Status," usually operationalised as a simple index of income, education and occupational prestige.
Status inconsistency is a situation when an individual's social positions have both positive and negative influences on his social status. For example, a teacher has a positive societal image (respect, prestige) which increases his status but may earn little | | |
