Paid duty cops - overpaying for security?
Article in the Toronto Star today about paid duty cops:
http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2014/04 ... _hume.html
The article focuses on how much it would cost to close off downtown streets in Toronto on Sunday mornings. A city councillor was wondering if security guards could be used instead of cops:
[QUOTE]And apparently no one but badge-wearing cops will do. “We asked the police to give us names of private security firms we could use, but they couldn’t,” she says. “That would cost more like $20 an hour not $85. The police weren’t able to say why it cost that amount. But in a police report to the city, they said they would need 260 officers to man every single intersection and end street along the route.”[/QUOTE]
This got me wondering about a couple of things:
- I expect that a police officer will provide better security than a security guard, but I wonder if the additional cost is worth it? And its not just closing off streets; we all see cops at construction sites redirecting traffic, at organized events, etc. A lot of these situations are not exactly high risk or require a high level of skill to perform.
- I got the impression from the article that the police force itself seems to be able to decide if a private security firm is allowed to provide security, or if they must do it themselves. Clearly a conflict of interest here - I am sure there are plenty of cops who would volunteer for these assignments. I assume this is why there are so many of them (regular constables, not management) who are making over 100K.
Just to be clear, I fully support a well paid, well trained and well disciplined police force in our society. I respect the fact that they sometimes deal with dangerous and difficult situations and should be compensated for it. But the resources of society are not infinite. I think it is reasonable to question whether we are overpaying for a level of security that we don't need.
http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2014/04 ... _hume.html
The article focuses on how much it would cost to close off downtown streets in Toronto on Sunday mornings. A city councillor was wondering if security guards could be used instead of cops:
[QUOTE]And apparently no one but badge-wearing cops will do. “We asked the police to give us names of private security firms we could use, but they couldn’t,” she says. “That would cost more like $20 an hour not $85. The police weren’t able to say why it cost that amount. But in a police report to the city, they said they would need 260 officers to man every single intersection and end street along the route.”[/QUOTE]
This got me wondering about a couple of things:
- I expect that a police officer will provide better security than a security guard, but I wonder if the additional cost is worth it? And its not just closing off streets; we all see cops at construction sites redirecting traffic, at organized events, etc. A lot of these situations are not exactly high risk or require a high level of skill to perform.
- I got the impression from the article that the police force itself seems to be able to decide if a private security firm is allowed to provide security, or if they must do it themselves. Clearly a conflict of interest here - I am sure there are plenty of cops who would volunteer for these assignments. I assume this is why there are so many of them (regular constables, not management) who are making over 100K.
Just to be clear, I fully support a well paid, well trained and well disciplined police force in our society. I respect the fact that they sometimes deal with dangerous and difficult situations and should be compensated for it. But the resources of society are not infinite. I think it is reasonable to question whether we are overpaying for a level of security that we don't need.