voxpopulicosmicum
Senior Member
You're naive if you believe you can take paid duty away from the TPS and not have a spate of "incidents" at the sites formerly staffed by TPS paid duty. That's how criminal enterpises operate.
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Why do police have to stand at construction sites?
- Thread starter Eug
- Start date
spider
Senior Member
How about hiring crossing guards at $15 per hour?
Johnny Au
Senior Member
What about Guardian Angels?
Admiral Beez
Superstar
Just add a Dalek to the cones...
Johnny Au
Senior Member
They would exterminate trespassers.Just add a Dalek to the cones...
W. K. Lis
Superstar
By having cops stand around construction sites, they would not be able to investigate crimes. Maybe that is what the people in charge want to happen?
TOareaFan
Superstar
Paid duty cops are off duty cops....no? The shift that is on duty would be fighting crime while their off shift brethren are cashing in watching the construction of buildings.
Palma
Senior Member
Thats why something needs to be done here. They have a way bigger population and yet the police here make more money. Something is wrong
Eug
Senior Member
Paid-duty policing’s ‘outrageous’ costs slammed by critics
While off-duty Toronto police officers who moonlight for the city and private organizations are getting a pay hike this year, critics scoff paid-duty policing is unnecessary and a waste of money.
“It’s also giving money to people who are already employed and well-paid,” said Councillor Pam McConnell, a former vice-chair of the Toronto Police Services Board.
“Nobody can tell me why we need police officers standing at the Blue Jays game when they’re looking up at the crowd doing seventh inning stretch and why you couldn’t have ordinary security guards doing that.”
Councillor Josh Matlow concurred, calling it “outrageous.”
“I don’t know any city in North America that allows itself to be hijacked by this,” he said. “When we see an officer standing next to a construction or public works site, it’s frustrating because we all know it’s not needed.”
On Friday, the Star reported the number of Toronto police officers being hired for off-duty assignments has soared, despite the city’s efforts to reduce or eliminate the need for paid-duty policing.
Last year, 3,047 off-duty cops earned $26.1 million for performing 51,526 jobs ranging from “traffic control” on construction sites to providing security for community events. That’s an increase from 2009 when 3,700 officers picked up 40,919 freelance assignments for a total bill of $24.2 million.
Vancouver uses cheaper alternative to paid-duty police
When Vancouver wants to close roads for marathons or divert traffic for other special events, the city calls in its special municipal constables.
They belong to a police department unit called the Vancouver Traffic Authority (VTA) and do a lot of the same kind of work performed by off-duty Toronto police officers at a fraction of the cost.
In Toronto, a paid-duty cop will soon earn $68 an hour — for a minimum three hours. The hourly rate of pay for a VTA non-unionized traffic constable ranges from $28 to $36.
“It appears to be, obviously, a cheaper way to do than positioning full-time (Vancouver police) members on an overtime basis,” Sgt. Randy Fincham said Wednesday from Vancouver.
“I haven’t seen any concerns . . . or problems with it,” says Fincham. He started out as a Vancouver traffic constable 18 years ago before joining the department full-time.
While off-duty Toronto police officers who moonlight for the city and private organizations are getting a pay hike this year, critics scoff paid-duty policing is unnecessary and a waste of money.
“It’s also giving money to people who are already employed and well-paid,” said Councillor Pam McConnell, a former vice-chair of the Toronto Police Services Board.
“Nobody can tell me why we need police officers standing at the Blue Jays game when they’re looking up at the crowd doing seventh inning stretch and why you couldn’t have ordinary security guards doing that.”
Councillor Josh Matlow concurred, calling it “outrageous.”
“I don’t know any city in North America that allows itself to be hijacked by this,” he said. “When we see an officer standing next to a construction or public works site, it’s frustrating because we all know it’s not needed.”
On Friday, the Star reported the number of Toronto police officers being hired for off-duty assignments has soared, despite the city’s efforts to reduce or eliminate the need for paid-duty policing.
Last year, 3,047 off-duty cops earned $26.1 million for performing 51,526 jobs ranging from “traffic control” on construction sites to providing security for community events. That’s an increase from 2009 when 3,700 officers picked up 40,919 freelance assignments for a total bill of $24.2 million.
Vancouver uses cheaper alternative to paid-duty police
When Vancouver wants to close roads for marathons or divert traffic for other special events, the city calls in its special municipal constables.
They belong to a police department unit called the Vancouver Traffic Authority (VTA) and do a lot of the same kind of work performed by off-duty Toronto police officers at a fraction of the cost.
In Toronto, a paid-duty cop will soon earn $68 an hour — for a minimum three hours. The hourly rate of pay for a VTA non-unionized traffic constable ranges from $28 to $36.
“It appears to be, obviously, a cheaper way to do than positioning full-time (Vancouver police) members on an overtime basis,” Sgt. Randy Fincham said Wednesday from Vancouver.
“I haven’t seen any concerns . . . or problems with it,” says Fincham. He started out as a Vancouver traffic constable 18 years ago before joining the department full-time.
rbt
Senior Member
Is this actually due to municipal law or is it something the owners (Rogers?) decided to do? If it's not law, then get your nose out of it Pam.
Second, with 20k to 30k people in the stadium, would it even add 5 cents to the ticket price?
Third, a security guard cannot make an arrest or place criminal charges. Making criminal charges stick is far easier if an officer witnesses the act.
Yeah, cops at mid-block construction sites probably isn't necessary. It is common in North America to require cops at major intersections during construction.
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Johnny Au
Senior Member
BuyNSell
New Member
They should use fewer police and more security guards. Less expense for everyone
wopchop
Building Toronto
I'm not sure of the law, but it is required, just as festivals, construction sites, and other special events are required to have a policing presence. What I do know for sure, though, is that you (the customer) cannot decide how many paid duty cops you require. If I'm having an event and the situation requires (ie. the law says that I do) that I have paid-duty police officers provide security, then I request paid-duty from the TPS and they come back and say that I need "x' amount of officers and it costs "x" amount of dollars.
rbt
Senior Member
Some events require it, particularly events on public property (and that's more an insurance thing), but I'm pretty certain baseball games aren't one of those events.
blahblahblah
Active Member
I think the practice is poor for the public's view of police in the long run. I have always had a great respect for police but recently I find myself cursing the ones sitting around doing nothing at construction sites. It may help them make more money but I think the way we view them might be subtly changing as we dwell on their generous salaries and ability to get paid for standing around job sites.