Response Time
A conversation with a prominent NJ State PBA member
This month :
Montgomery Township Local 355 State Delegate Joseph Sles
The Vitals
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Grew up in Toms River
On the job since May 1998
Hired to Montgomery Township Police Department in 1999
State Delegate since 2010
Former Local 355 treasurer and vice president
Active on NJ State PBA Political Action Committee and Convention Committee
Married to Kerri
Father of Kasey, Joseph and Zachary
F irst Response
What made you want to become a law enforcement offi cer and get
involved with the PBA?
I always knew I wanted to be a cop. I graduated from Widener University with a history
degree in 1996. As soon as I came out, I started applying at law enforcement agencies. I
got hired by Seaside Heights, and from there I moved to the Montgomery Township Police
Department. I wanted to be involved right away in the union. My father was a big union guy
for 50-plus years. From a young age, I remember going to all the labor parades and rallies.
My father was always preaching about the hard work of the unions to protect and preserve
workers’ rights.
Conversation pieces
How much work goes into being a member of the PBA Convention
Committee and planning a main convention like the one taking place
this month?
It’s really a year-round eff ort. There’s a lot of hard work involved with planning both the Mini
Convention and the Main Convention. But it’s very rewarding and satisfying to put together
a good convention for the members so that they not only have a good time, but also to
be informed about the current issues and future trends. Chairman Pete Andreyev does a
phenomenal job coordinating, along with the entire convention committee.
Local 355 recently experienced the loss of one of its members. What’s it
like to lose a brother, and what has the Local done to cope?
Having attended many police funerals throughout my years in law enforcement, it’s always a
sad occasion. But when you lose one of your own, somebody you work with and were friends
with, it’s tough. Our entire department really came together and leaned on one another.
As the State Delegate, you have to be strong not only for everyone around you, but your
membership and their families. We reached out immediately to Cop2Cop to get help and
assistance. I can’t say enough about Cop2Cop. They’ve been phenomenal. And then there’s
the support that you get from the state level from President Pat Colligan and Executive Vice
President Marc Kovar. It’s amazing, and it really is needed to get through a tough time.
How does Cop2Cop help members get through such a diffi cult loss?
Cop2Cop gets you in a room and gets you talking. What one person might be feeling, another
person might fi nd that they have those same feelings. It’s normal and it’s part of the grieving
process. I think Cop2Cop helps you see that you’re not in this alone.
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What’s it been like being involved on the PBA Political Action
Committee, and how rewarding is it to see the progress?
It was huge for Pat and Marc to get the Political Action Committee (PAC) started, and then
to get State delegates involved so that they can pass it down to the membership. Everyone
has to remember, this is our PBA. The amount of time and eff ort you put into it is not only for
yourself, but for your members, your brothers and sisters, your families, your past members,
your current members and your future members. Putting together the PAC and getting
S5 passed was a monumental step in securing the future of the union and police offi cers’
pensions.
How do you look back on those eight years under the previous
administration in Trenton?
Obviously, nobody enjoyed going through that tough stretch under the previous
administration, but I think it defi nitely made the union stronger. It rallied everyone and
made us come tougher, and I want to see that continue. There’s always a silver lining. People
have to remember, it’s only temporary. Politicians will come and go, but the union will
always endure.
Last Response
What is your outlook on the PBA right now?
I feel the PBA is as strong as ever. When I fi rst started attending PBA meetings, President
Mike Madonna was in charge. Then came Tony Wieners, and now Pat Colligan and Marc
Kovar. I think the union has never been in better shape across the board, not only from
those guys at the top, but all the way through our executive board to the staff that works in
the state offi ce and our county conferences. It’s important that we preserve what our past
union members fought so hard for. The unions have always been under attack, and they
always will be. The movement to preserve and protect labor is as important as ever and will
continue into the future.