patrol officer

maintenance person

dispatcher

mail carrier

public safety officer

California Highway Patrol

Typical day at work: So varied.
First 23 years of my career I was a "motorcycle cop". I have always enjoyed working outdoors and working with the public. During my career, I worked in 6 different offices. Each office had its own unique geographical issues and management. I was quite adept at adjusting to these new areas and management.
I loved working with beat partners. As I developed seniority, I enjoyed teaching younger officers how to go to work happy and return home fulfilled from your accomplishments for the day.
I learned a great deal about myself during my career. I was proud and happy when I was commended for actions I took during my tenure. I remembered these times. When I promoted to Sergeant, I returned the favor to my officers. I never forgot what it was like to be the new guy, the inexperienced guy. I loved to teach, and took on many assignments such as teaching radar. I eventually became a certified Department Radar Instructor, and Court testimony expert on radar.
I also became a certified CMTO (certified motorcycle training officer) and trained numerous officers on how to implement safety while assigned to motorcycle duty. In time, I became a member of PSD (protective services detail). I was on the team which provided security for Presidents Bush SR, President Clinton, and President G.W. Bush. I met many important people from around the globe.
This job was the best!

What is the best part of working at the company?
The CHP offers so much opportunity for different training, a variety of assignments, and advancement.  

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Management can be challenging depending on the personality of supervisors and their own ability to work well with others and motivate employees to want to work hard to meet goals of the department.  Frankly, many sergeants I worked for should never have been promoted to supervise people.  The department seemed not to consider one's ability to work well with others in a team like environment when promoting.  They are more focused on an individuals knowledge of policy rather than personality traits.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Can be very difficult depending on chemistry of command you are working at.  There is always a lot of movement within the department with people promoting and/or transferring to other areas and locations.  The work chemistry is not always consistent.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Lots of paperwork and attention to detail.  Obviously a great deal of contact with the public, which I enjoyed most.  Helping tge public in various ways is very rewarding.

I work for the most amazing people in the world they are thoughtful, wise, and supportive.  During my day I generally retrieve data through many computer programs.  The data is used to comprise multiple reports to assist me in making an organized presentation regarding personnel, expenditures and enforcement activities.  My co-workers are my largest resource for problem solving and I value their experiences.  The position that I hold is very fast pace and is demanding but that helps the day to fly by.  I enjoy working with many diverse people from all cultures and back grounds.  The review process from start to finish is one of the biggest challenges I have.  Sometimes the data becomes outdated before it can be acted due to extensive review from several chains of command. What I enjoy most about my job is knowing that I help make a difference in saving lives in the great State of California.

Excellent experience and a great career with excellent salary and benefits.  You will be providing an invaluable service to the people of California which in itself is a very rewarding experience. You will be provided the best training and equipment to ensure you are safe and capable of handling any stressful situation. You will be able to travel and work for any of the California Highway Patrols Divisions throughout the State.  You can apply for commercial vehicle enforcement, K9 handler, Auto theft Investigator, Hazardous Materials, Drug interdiction, Academy Instructor, Helicopter or fixed wing pilot or observer, Motorcycle Officer and Capital Protection or Mounted Equestrian or Bicycle Officer.

I kept records for Human Resources/Personnel.  I kept records of subpoenas and issued them to the officers, ensuring they had the time to attend court.  I keyed tickets into the computer, which were sent to Dept. of Motor Vehicles, and Headquarters.  I kept records of stolen and recovered reports.  We had a small office, with 62 officers.  I attended the meeting regarding the officers' new contracts and helped them hammer out the details of the new contractors, so that the officers were happy with the contracts and when I returned to the office, I gave several briefings on the new contracts tot he officers.

I did 3/4 of the work in the office and when I left, they had to hire 2 people to replace me.  Management was surprised I left, but I could not advance in that office.  I was offered a promotion, so I left.  I did enjoy the work.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Specifically speaking about the ASM auto mechanic position. The job was very fulfilling. The officers were very appreciative of my efforts there. I had a much better experience than in 21 years of working at the dealership, because working for the dealer or private industry is a thankless job.
CHP was completely different. It was a wonderful experience. I also felt like I was contributing to a good cause unlike for profit automotive repair which seeks mainly to take advantage of the customer.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
It wasn’t stressful in my opinion.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Very positive culture for the most part. 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Repair and maintenance of patrol cars, parts ordering and inventory, clerical work related to the job.

-There is no "typical day at work".  Every day presents differing   challenges and multiple opportunities. 
- I learned to to manage the rapid, safe and economic flow of traffic on California's highways through education training and over time, through gained experience.   
- The CHP management personnel are second to none and allow you a feeling of both freedom of choice and of being supported in he adult choices you make.  
- The workplace culture is one of teamwork where everyone is on board working for the same goal,  semi military but much like my prior military service.  .
- The hardest part of the job is no doubt in dealing with the carnage on the highway and the feeling of personal responsibility you take on as some don't survive.  
-  I found the most enjoyable part of the job was being treated as an adult, with responsibility that weighed on our shoulders and felt like it belonged there  because you could handle it.

This is a fast pace, streessful and demanding position.   Training is paid and adequate for the position.   There are rewarding moments and times the stress/loss is just too much to bear.   Learn to process the stress in your own life or you will burn out.   The work day is constant workload with 2 twenty minute breaks and a 30 min lunch.   Shifts are selected by seniority first and it is 24/7/365.   Expect to work nights, weekends and all holidays.   You will miss family celebrations but reward can be pretty great when you talk someone off a bridge thats readynto jump or you stay on the phone with someone just involved in a major traffic collision until help arrives.    It was the best 15 years of my life (work wise).

Each day at work was different. Most of the activity I was involved in was self generated/pro-active. There were also re-active times such as responding to calls.

I learned how to de-escalate potential injury producing situations, by speaking calmly and clearly to people. I learned how to confidently approach strangers and begin conversations with them. 

My co-workers were very easy to work with and get along with. We all took care of our responsibilities and assisted each other with theirs.

The management, for the most part, were easy to get along with. If you disagreed with them, you could discuss it professionally with them.

The hardest part was dealing with fatalities caused by incidences which could have been avoided.

The most enjoyable part of this job was the job. It was a fun job.

It’s a state job so the benefits are mid, it’s a great spot if you want an easy office gig with an average workload (in rural area offices) but mostly worth it if you’re in it for the long run and don’t mind blended friend/relationships in the workplace.
The field is male dominated. If no experience with or around cops, beware that they have a different view on what it means to be ‘professional’ at work. A lot of vulgar language & inappropriate topics of discussion - behavior that may be waved off as ‘blowing off steam’ but it just speaks to the culture that is fostered. I’ve worked at plenty of agencies at the local/county level and none of this would be tolerated, regardless of how competent the person is at their job. 
Comes down to putting up with the drama and tension/dark humor for [insert here] or finding a normal environment where you don’t have to work so hard just to be appointed.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Patrol officer 65 salaries reported	$148,065 per year
Maintenance person 1 salary reported	$3,709 per month
Dispatcher 3 salaries reported	$6,183 per month
Mail carrier 2 salaries reported	$5,944 per month
Public safety officer 1 salary reported	$6,307 per month

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