'Where a jurisdiction has created a civil service commission pursuant to Section 38.501 of the MICHIGAN COMPILED LAWS ANNOTATED, and the jurisdiction employs 'full paid' as well as 'part time' and/or 'volunteer' employees, does the Civil Service Act apply to all members of the police or fire department or is the Act applicable only to those employees who 'devote their whole time to fire fighting and law enforcement'?'

'For the benefit of the public service and to prevent delay, injury, or interruption therein by reason of the enactment of this act, all persons holding a position in the fire and/or police department, including the chief thereof, when this act takes effect, who shall have served in such position for a period of at least 6 months last past continuously, are hereby declared eligible for permanent appointment under civil service to the offices, places, positions or employments which they shall then hold, respectively, . . ..' [Emphasis added.]

'On and after the date this act takes effect, appointments to and promotions in all paid fire and/or police departments of cities, villages or municipalities of any population whatsoever shall be made only according to qualifications and fitness to be ascertained by examinations, which shall be competitive, and no person shall be appointed, reinstated, promoted or discharged as a paid member of said departments regardless of rank or position, in any fire or police department of any city, village or municipality in the state of Michigan, in any member or by any means other than those prescribed in this act.'

'The title to the act clearly discloses that it was enacted to provide a civil service system based upon 'examination and investigation as to merit, efficiency and fitness for appointment, employment and promotion of all officers and men.'

'The legislature made it clear in section 6 as to its reason for granting civil service status to those who had held their position for 6 months by using the words: 'For the benefit of the public service and to prevent delay, injury, or interruption therein by reason of the enactment of this act.' We believe that a fair interpretation of section 6 would show the legislative intent, or reason, for establishing probationary status for those who had held their positions less than 6 months was that they might remain in the service until the commission to be formed could adopt its rules and methods to carry forward the purpose of the act and to provide a system based upon 'examination and investigation as to merit, efficiency and fitness for appointment, employment and promotion of all officers and men.'

'The intent of the legislature to bring as far as possible without exception all members of the department under the civil service regulations is disclosed by the provisions of section 7 dealing with new appointments. . . .' [Emphasis added.]

'The civil service act here involved was enacted to provide a civil service system based upon 'examination and investigation as to merit, efficiency and fitness for appointment, employment and promotion of all officers and men.' . . . If, however, a vacancy occurs which the appointing authority does desire to fill, it must be done in accordance with the procedures set forth in the act. This means that all vacancies are to be filled from eligibility lists except, of course, those permitted for 'urgent reasons' under MCLA 38.511(c); MSA 5.3361(c). . . .' [Emphasis added.]

'It is untenable to suggest that Act 78, PA 1935, is applicable only to those members of a city police department who are fully paid by the city. . . .'

'It is, therefore, my opinion that the filling of vacancies in officers' positions above the rank of fireman are required to be made in accordance with 1935 PA 78, supra, Sec. 12, and may not be limited to volunteer or part-time officers to the exclusion of regularly paid full-time firemen. Exclusion of either class, full-time firemen or eligible part-time or volunteer firemen, would be inconsistent with the provisions of 1935 PA 78, supra, Sec. 12. . . .'