PITTSBURGH — 11 Investigates has learned that 40 detectives will be temporarily reassigned to the patrol unit to cover vacations this summer.
Sources told 11 Investigates that many of the detectives are frustrated by this move.
The move comes as the number of police officers has now dropped to a record low of 664.
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Chief Investigator Rick Earle recently met with Pittsburgh Police Officer Union President Bob Swartzwelder to discuss the staffing crisis.
Earle: Things are so bad that they’re going to dive into these pools of specialty units to get officers back on the beat?
Swartzwelder: They are and then I’ll file grievances because of the Matrix study.
The Matrix study released by the Gainey administration two years ago suggested the bureau was adequately staffed and had too many patrol officers.
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Swartzwelder said the study was seriously flawed.
“The police department is woefully understaffed. They used a Matrix study which was a hit piece to get to this number and I don’t know why,” Swartzwelder said.
The staffing shortages are clearly evident on the South Side on East Carson Street when officers on two consecutive weekends earlier this month had to call in police from surrounding departments, including Monroeville and Penn Hills, to help with large crowds.
Sources told 11 Investigates the city did not call in help this past weekend, likely because of concerns raised by council members and the union over liability.
Pittsburgh City Councilman Anthony Coghill also raised concerns about liability issues when relying on other police departments.
Coghill has been sounding the staffing alarm for years.
And he’s not surprised by the numbers.
“They’re alarming and we have to stop the bleeding. Not only do we need a heavy, aggressive recruiting process, but we also need to find a way to keep the experienced, you know, veteran officers that are on the police force. We need to sweeten the pot and try to keep them here for a longer period of time because we’re losing as much to other boroughs as we are too retirement,” Coghill said.
The city told 11 Investigates that they’ve ramped up recruitment efforts by hiring a full-time recruiting officer.
They’re also in the process of completing a recruitment video and they said more than 165 potential academy candidates are now in the pipeline.
Swartzwelder said that’s a good thing given the fact that 163 officers are currently eligible for retirement today.
Swartzwelder said he believes the decline won’t stop until the pay increases.
He said many officers have left for higher-paying jobs at small departments in the Pittsburgh area.
“They have to actively recruit and pay these officers correctly, at least on par with their peer group. I’m not saying they need to be the highest paid, but when you have Mt. Oliver, and I’m taking nothing away from that hard-working police department, but at two years they’re at $102,500, and the average city officer is less than $90,000,” Swartzwelder said.
Adding to the staffing woes, the union was so disappointed with the city’s recent contract offer that they filed for arbitration. And Swartzwelder suggested that will likely lead to more retirements this year.
11 Investigates has learned that as many as 20 officers may leave next month.
Swartzwelder said that under the contract, the city is allowed to reassign officers for up to 30 days, but he plans to file a grievance against the city for reassigning the detectives because of the Matrix staffing study that concluded the department had enough officers.
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