Life as a police officer is incredibly stressful. Not only do officers have to deal with dangerous and stressful situations, but they’re also often excluded from their communities. The continued popularity of social media and the stereotyping it often fuels has only increased the impact of forced isolation on police officers. Pair these stressors with the hundreds of others that can impact your officers in their work, and you have a recipe for police burnout.

A recent study found that prison and jail staff are at significantly increased risk of contracting COVID-19 compared to the general public. With all the time prison staff spend around prisoners and members of the public who come in for visitation, this number is not surprising. However, it’s had a major impact on the availability of staff for prisons and the recruitment of new team members. Because of this, correctional officers are overworked, which poses a threat to public safety. In this blog, we explore ways correctional leaders can increase staffing and relieve the burden on their officers.

Public safety agencies nationwide are constantly looking for ways to improve the efficiency, fairness, and safety of their scheduling policies. Adding off-duty programs not only increases scheduling complexities, but also adds risks and potential liability. It’s imperative to have well defined, enforceable polices in place to help mitigate these risks.

Ask any administrator for a list of their top 5 concerns, and it is sure to include the recruitment and retention of their workforce. It does not matter what facet of public safety you work in or where you are. Whether you are the warden at a large prison or chief at a local fire department, staffing is always a concern. Finding and keeping qualified employees is something that keeps agency leaders up at night.

Like many aspects of life in 2020, the structure of law enforcement is undergoing fundamental shifts. Falling revenues have cut deeply into agency budgets and public protests have increased tension and created uncertainty. At the same time, the COVID-19 pandemic has placed additional stress on police and sheriff’s department budgets and resources. What a year! As we are on the threshold of welcoming in 2021, let’s look at the types of changes law enforcement can expect as a result.