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A recent audit conducted by the City of San Diego has highlighted the need for reforms in the San Diego Police Department regarding overtime hours and mandatory breaks between shifts.
The 41-page audit enumerated the risks associated with officer fatigue, including car crashes, injuries and compromised decision-making during critical situations.
According to the audit, the lack of overtime limits and mandatory breaks in the police department has also led to some officers working excessively long hours without adequate rest periods.
For example, the report revealed instances where officers worked days of 16 hours or longer for multiple consecutive days, often with less than eight hours off between shifts.
According to police officials, fatigue among officers has led to burnout.
“I’ve had to work 18- or 19-hour days in critical incidents,” Officer Jared Wilson told Fox 5. “I can tell you I’ve gone home at the end of those days and I am just wiped out. You’re mentally exhausted, you’re physically exhausted.”
To address these concerns, the audit recommended implementing limits on overtime hours, either daily or weekly, to curb excessive work hours and reduce the risk of fatigue-related incidents.
Additionally, it called for mandatory breaks of at least eight hours between shifts to ensure officers have adequate time for rest and recovery.
The audit also proposed creating a centralized overtime system within the department to prioritize critical assignments and ensure efficient allocation of resources.
Currently, each of the department’s nine geographic divisions handles its own overtime assignments, leading to potential inefficiencies in resource allocation.
While San Diego’s spending on police overtime is below average compared to comparable large cities in California, the audit suggested that the city could still optimize its expenditure by implementing these reforms, noting that the department spent over $50 million on police overtime in fiscal year 2023, exceeding the budgeted amount.
In response to the audit findings, Police Chief David Nisleit said the department was willing to analyze and possibly implement the recommended reforms.
However, he noted that negotiating with labor unions representing the affected workers might be necessary before implementing certain changes.
The audit also recommended reviving a plan to reduce officer overtime by hiring more civilian workers and police investigative service officers.
This approach, which has seen increasing popularity across cities in recent years, aims to address staffing shortages and reduce reliance on higher-paid uniformed officers for lower-level administrative tasks.
Wilson, who is also president of the San Diego Police Officers Association, called for responsible overtime usage amid severe staffing shortages.
According to Wilson, the department is currently short 300 officers compared to 2009 levels, despite a rise in population and 9-1-1 call response times.
“The police department is using overtime in a responsible way, but our staffing crisis is at its peak. So we really need people to sign up to become police officers, we need people to recognize this overtime is necessary,” Wilson said. “We need to fill those gaps. We need people to sign up for this job, but they also need to be fairly compensated.”
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