Mayor Tells Officers He Will Consider Scheduling Options

Mayor Richard Riordan promised to keep “a slightly open mind” about a compressed work schedule for officers at a question-and-answer session Tuesday with the rank and file at the Los Angeles Police Department’s Foothill station.

At the beginning of the 7 a.m. roll call meeting, Riordan said he would consider a 10-hour, four-day work schedule--as opposed to the current five-day, eight-hour shifts.

However, he said he opposed a “three-12” schedule--in which police officers work three 12-hour shifts each week--because that system would not allow officers to spend enough time in their communities.

The popular shorter work week was tried in the department in the early 1990s, but was discontinued by LAPD Chief Bernard Parks in 1997, his first year in office. Most officers now work standard eight-hour shifts five days a week.

On Tuesday, Foothill Division officers spent much of the 45-minute session with the mayor championing the “three-12” schedule, saying it would boost morale, make the department more attractive to recruits and improve policing.

Riordan said he saw advantages to a three-day week and would keep an open mind. “The positive part is you can maintain the same units essentially. . . . and you can justify performance better and be held accountable,” he said.

The mayor, who has seven months left in his final term, does not have the power to single-handedly alter police policy, but could help influence a change in the system.

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Officers said a “three-12” schedule would help the LAPD attract personnel from other law enforcement departments such as Burbank, Pasadena and Beverly Hills that offer a compressed schedule. LAPD officials estimate there are currently 800 fewer officers now than the 10,000 employed three years ago.

Officers said a shorter work week would allow for more standardized scheduling, which would improve communication within the department. Some supervisors say they don’t see enough of their charges under the current schedule because of staggered days off.

“You’d get to know more of your officers’ strengths and weaknesses [under a compressed schedule],” one sergeant said.