In a crackdown on escalating gun violence, police officers are being ordered to sacrifice one of their off days under a new intensified crime-fighting strategy, prompting the Police Association to call for extra pay, Barbados TODAY has learned.
Some officers have voiced concerns about being overworked, stating that the new directive would put them further under pressure.
“We don’t want unhappy police on the road because that is a recipe for disaster,” the head of the Barbados Police Association Inspector Wenley Carter warned in an exclusive interview with Barbados TODAY.
A directive, outlined in a memorandum from Commissioner of Police Richard Boyce that took effect on Monday, stressed a “manpower strong” approach. The memo, dated last Friday, instructed officers of The Barbados Police Service (TBPS) across all divisions and units to give up a day off each week to be available for duty and special assignments, with no exemptions.
“This enhanced approach is designed to deliver a more enabled citizen security response and to reduce all forms of disorder and criminal behaviours as well as the fear of crime,” the memo stated. It added that the plan would continue as long as necessary, with stringent oversight to ensure officers are properly compensated.
The memo read in part: “It will be manpower strong, requiring for not only visible policing but also the strategic result-oriented deployment of resources.
“To this end, I am to direct that with effect from September 23, 2024, each officer . . . will give up a day off and make him or herself available for duty and special assignment as determined at the divisional or national level. Note that such a sacrifice will be managed rigorously to ensure that each officer is compensated as required.”
In response to the order, the Police Association has called for double-time pay for officers’ additional hours. Inspector Carter said that while officers were committed to supporting the initiative for the greater good of the country, it was only fair to pay officers double for going the extra mile since gun violence had reached a new threshold.
“We support the directive because it is for the better of the country. We are willing to help with the initiative. It is not affecting the police but eventually, who says it would not? Also, we have family in this society too, so we will be doing it for our family, our friends and for the nation,” Inspector Carter told Barbados TODAY.
“So we will put an effort in it but when our family misses us for six days, we want to be in a position to show them what we are really doing for it. Not that we are not doing it for the love of the nation but we still want proper compensation at the end of the day.”
He added that officers were already giving up off days to supplement the shifts because TBPS is short-staffed.
“There is a crisis in the country and we are trying our best,” he said. “The Commissioner decided the best way [was to] get more manpower and he has the power to do that. We asked for the double pay but they ain’t tell us if we will get it. I don’t know what got to be done. We want to make the government look good and they should say: ‘The police deserve to get double pay for the effort for this occasion’. It ain’t nothing you can just decide but we are just asking.”
Carter continued: “If we work on the off days we will get paid for the off days, but since this is a crisis situation and we got to double the effort, double the pay. This is a rough time now, the water is rough; not that we won’t double our efforts, but at the end of the day, people want to be happy.
“The situation in Barbados is not the same as when I joined in 1985, it may be more dangerous than then.”
He insisted that officers are committed to tackling the crisis but warned that burnout could become an issue, particularly for Criminal Investigation Department (CID) detectives who are working “nonstop”.
Inspector Carter added that the government should act on earlier promises of benefits and allowances made to officers during the March Budget.
“There are things in the pipeline and we ain’t get them as yet, and that is why people are frustrated,” he said. “Some of the police officers feel it was a promise to make them work hard for [ICC] World Cup and then there was Crop Over. So this is where some of the frustration lies.”
Prime Minister Mia Mottley recently announced a series of tough new policies to address the growing problem of gun violence, including stricter regulations on vehicle window tints, number plates, mask-wearing, and the use of 3D printers.
Despite the added pressures, Inspector Carter said there had been no reports of mass absenteeism or officers calling in sick. But, he cautioned that low morale could have a negative impact on the force’s effectiveness.
The police association chief said: “Once directives are made, there will be some people who are happy and some people will not be happy; you can never make directives to make everybody happy. So far, we haven’t heard about any mass set of people reporting sick or any mass set of concerns about the duties. I think that the majority of police don’t have a problem with the directive, but if there is one we will have to investigate and inform the commissioner and his staff. We don’t want unhappy police on the road because that is a recipe for disaster. He/she could get injured. If you have a frustrated officer, they may not perform as professionally as they should.”
sheriabrathwaite@barbadostoday.bb
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