Patrol shift schedule

Days - Evenings - Second Shift - Midnight - Graveyard! Police officers use different terms to describe their working hours. No single term is universally accepted, but every officer knows what it means to be assigned to patrol duties on a rotating basis. Officers also can attest to the challenges that the patrol shift schedule places on their professional and personal lives.

At the same time, police supervisors face dilemmas when scheduling patrol officers. Weekends, peak crime hours, service demands, and availability of personnel all tax supervisors who must ensure that a sufficient work force is on the streets to enforce the law and to protect citizens.

Unfortunately, no patrol shift schedule will work for every police department. A review of the literature on this issue reveals different stances taken by law enforcement professionals. However, the majority believe that the patrol schedule should be based on the needs of the agency and the community, which in this case, can be determined by calls for service and the distribution of those calls. Personnel should be deployed where they are needed, when they are needed, and in proportion to the workload.(1)

There are numerous indicators for effective patrol division scheduling. Some considerations include output (productivity), overtime accrual, hidden costs for other units, officers' use of sick leave, number of accidents involving patrol cars, collective bargaining agreements with employee associations, and officer morale,(2) as well as the number of hours worked each day and the number of days worked each week.

The four 10-hour-day work week receives much attention and support. In addition to enriching an officer's professional and family life,(3) the four 10-hour day patrol schedule has other advantages, such as maximum use of the workforce during critical service demand hours, equal distribution of the workload, efficient shift changes, and balanced use of equipment.(4)

As complex and demanding as scheduling patrol work may be, several departments have adopted systems that best serve their needs. This case study details the revamping of the patrol shift schedule for the Abilene, Texas, Police Department.

Former Schedule

In the early 1980s, the Abilene Patrol Division, which was divided into three companies with three squads each, worked rotating 8-hour shifts with fixed days off. For example, Squad 1 of each company did not work Friday and Saturday; Squad 2 of each company was off Sunday and Monday; and Tuesday and Wednesday were days off for Squad 3 of each company. Supervisors overstaffed their companies on Thursdays to accommodate inservice training. In addition, the companies rotated shifts every 4 weeks.

A captain, a lieutenant, and three sergeants were assigned to each company, which had the same number of officers. The assistant chief in charge of the Patrol Division appointed personnel to each company at his discretion.

The configuration worked for an extended period of time, despite some inherent problems. On some days, a captain supervised a company; on others, a lieutenant was in charge. This prohibited consistency in the chain of command, and lieutenants and captains exercised the same amount of control. The shift commander, regardless of rank, monitored calls and radio traffic, serving mostly in a reactive capacity.

Increasing call loads and decreasing budgets marked the mid-1980s. In an effort to service these calls with fewer resources, the chief of police appointed a committee to develop a new scheduling configuration for the Patrol Division. This committee devised a plan that called for a five-company system with a four 10-hour-day work week, rotating shifts, and rotating days off. Unfortunately, the new system failed to address the disparity of heavier call loads during evening and weekend shifts. And, while the system allowed for 3 days off each week, it also led to many personal problems, particularly with the scheduling of family events.

This system also eliminated the day in the previous patrol schedule that supervisors overstaffed to allow for inservice training. Supervisors now had to place officers on special assignment duty to attend training sessions, which further decreased availability. This schedule, which quickly became unpopular with most officers, still did not meet the needs of the department.

A New Approach

In October 1988, the department took a different approach to patrol scheduling. The new schedule retained the four 10-hour-day work week, with fixed shifts and fixed days off. What changed were the configuration of the Patrol Division - from five to six companies - and supervisory responsibility for the companies and squads.

With the new schedule, a lieutenant supervises each company, which consists of either two or three squads. Each sergeant, in turn, supervises a squad made up of six or seven patrol officers who work the same days and hours.

Regular patrol duty consists of four 10-hour days per week. Patrol companies (designated A through F) work a fixed shift with fixed days off. All companies, however, work on Wednesday. In other words, an officer works either Sunday through Wednesday or Wednesday through Saturday and works the same hours each week, with the exception of the hours worked on Wednesdays.

Each Wednesday, supervisors alternate one-half of the division for special assignments and inservice training. Actual duty hours and number of officers vary by company and squad and depend on workload. Occasionally, supervisors can alter the hours worked by officers to address the workload or to provide security for special events.

The workload required a major overlap in patrol hours from 8 p.m. to 2 a.m. As shown in the table, Company D works 1 hour later than Company C to accommodate the busy weekend periods, and a third squad was added to Company D because of the high call load on the days that company works. Also, the Traffic Division now supplements the patrol force during daylight hours by responding to calls involving traffic accidents, abandoned vehicles, and traffic direction.

Currently, the Patrol Division consists of 10 patrol districts and 1 desk position staffed by each patrol company. Computer-aided dispatch supports all patrol districts and call assignments.

Once each year, the assistant chief in charge of the Patrol Division reorganizes the division to adjust for workload, vacancies, and new employees. This gives supervisors and veteran officers the opportunity to choose their assignments, which are governed by seniority.

Benefits

The Abilene Police Department's new patrol schedule provides many advantages to both the department and its officers. For the department, the plan maintains clear lines of authority and unity of command. It also allows for inservice training and special assignments, because all companies work on Wednesdays. Instructors can teach an inservice course to the entire division in 4 weeks, and officers are available to assist investigative units, conduct community-oriented policing projects, serve warrants, and provide selected traffic enforcement.

Other benefits also accrued. First, the amount spent by the department for overtime pay was reduced. The department realized a 32-percent reduction in overtime pay when figures from fiscal year 1985 were compared to those of fiscal year 1994. In addition, there were fewer hours of sick leave taken by officers. And, it has been determined that this scheduling was a contributing factor in the reduction of employee turnover.

Officers, however, receive the real benefits. They like having 3 days off each week and maintaining a regular schedule. They also can take advantage of extra duty, overtime assignments, and department-approved security jobs precluded by previous schedules. Furthermore, senior officers have the opportunity to select the shift that they want to work.

Both the department and the officers benefit from regular inservice training and officer availability for special assignments, which promotes career development. This not only improves the department's efficiency but also increases officer morale.

The community also wins with this patrol schedule. With the overlap in shifts, more officers are available to answer calls for service when they are most needed.

Conclusion

Several other departments similar in size to the Abilene Police Department have studied and implemented its current patrol schedule, some with limited success. The most important consideration, however, is to develop a system that works best for the department and the community.

Customizing a schedule involves research and analysis. It requires patrol officer input to ensure a workable patrol schedule that is acceptable to administrators and a schedule that meets the needs and expectations of the officers. Often, the attitudes of those most affected control the success of any new approach. But, in the end, the time and effort expended to devise a workable and accepted patrol schedule will go a long way toward maintaining departmental efficiency and improving officer morale.

Endnotes

1 Raymond J. Rose, "Enhancing Organizational Efficiency Through Alternative Scheduling," The Police Chief, August 1979, 60-63.

2 R. Michael Buren and William W. Stenzel, "Indicators of Effective Patrol Division Work Scheduling," The Police Chief, April 1985, 34-38.

3 Robert Gavney, John Calderwood, and Lyle Knowles, "Attitude of Patrol Officers and Wives Toward a Four-day Workweek," The Police Chief, February 1979, 33-35.

4 Francis D. Hand, R.T. Burgess, and J.S. Wilson, "A Four-Ten Plan for Moderate and Large Police Patrol Operations," Law and Order, November 1975, 9-13.

Lieutenant Moore is assigned to the Patrol Division of the Abilene, Texas, Police Department.

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