Feb 13, 2008 9:52 am US/Central
Weis Wants Cops To Work 12-Hour Shifts, 3 Days
Spokeswoman: Off-Duty Misconduct Is Not Why
CHICAGO (Sun-Times Media Wire) ―
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Police Supt. Jody Weis
CBS
Newly appointed Chicago Police Supt. Jody Weis is exploring the possibility of asking rank-and-file officers to work 12-hour shifts three days a week to bolster morale and shorten medical leaves, officials said Tuesday.
With longer hours fewer days a week, police officers who now work eight-hour shifts would have more time to decompress and spend with their families, and they might be less inclined to go drinking after work, researchers contend.
"It would give them fewer end-of-watch periods in which they might want to go out for choir practice. Maybe you'd reduce incidents that way," said Bryan Vila, a former police officer-turned criminal justice professor at Washington State University, who has studied the effect of shift changes on performance.
The desire to minimize off-duty embarrassments -- like the barroom brawls that hastened the retirement of former Supt. Phil Cline -- is not what's motivating Weis, said spokeswoman Monique Bond.
Weis decided to explore the possibility of a Los Angeles-style, 12-hour shift after a give-and-take last week with officers in the 21st District, Bond said. Weis has been appearing at roll calls -- and dismissing police supervisors from that discussion -- to get his finger on the pulse of officers on the street.
"Other police departments have embraced this model and the concept could be appealing to officers. You're working three days, but you have the flexibility of having consecutive days off. There could also be a decrease in medical leave because you're off longer," Bond said.
Fraternal Order of Police President Mark Donahue said the union is open to discussing it, with some reservation. In 2004, the department experimented with a 10-hour shift.
"Twelve hours in a beat car in Chicago -- in most areas of the city -- is a very long work day. It has worked in other areas of the country. But it's something that has to be analyzed," said Donahue, who is pushing for a fixed schedule of six-days-on and three-days-off in contract talks with the city.
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2009. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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