Comment: Police agencies need flexibility for diversity, safety

By Sue Rahr and John Lovick / For The Herald

Calls to increase the diversity of police departments have been echoing for decades, especially when it comes to increasing the number of women in the profession.

A National Institute of Justice report cites a broad range of benefits from increasing the number of women in policing, which over the past 50 years has hovered around 12 percent, with only slight improvements for some agencies. The “30 X 30 Initiative,” from the NYU Law School Policing Project, recommends that women should make up 30 percent of the patrol force in police agencies by 2030.

But how do we achieve a goal that has eluded our profession since we each began our careers four decades ago? A joint report issued in 2021 by the Office of Community Oriented Policing and the International Association of Chiefs of Police states, “Agencies choosing to offer flexible work schedules and rotating shifts could also be advantageous to families … helping law enforcement agencies attract and retain top officer talent for whom family health and wellness are of principal concern.”

There’s precedent for a policy like this: emergency room nursing and the flexible work schedules it requires. Both nursing and policing require skills and training that are perishable, and staffing needs that follow a large and predictable pattern of fluctuating demand by hour of the day and day of the week. Both careers require clear thinking and life-and-death decision making.

Historically, the nursing profession has been staffed predominantly by women, and long-ago staffing and scheduling models were built to accommodate the needs of parenting and childcare while delivering emergency services 24/7.

Not so with policing. Most police agencies offer only the option of full-time work schedules, with “special leave” as required under the Family Medical Leave Act. These leave options are not designed to be used long-term. Anyone who has raised a young child knows that the first years are sleepless and difficult. Research done at Washington State University cites the extreme risk to sleep-deprived officers and those they encounter.

In survey after survey spanning decades, women have cited the lack of flexible work schedules as a significant barrier to entering and remaining in the profession. Washington state now has an opportunity to bust this barrier, improving officer well-being and reducing tragic and deadly errors when tired police officers try to balance their family obligations with serving their communities.

In addition to attracting and retaining a more diverse workforce and improving safety, the ability to utilize part-time work schedules can save tax dollars and enable police departments to better match field staffing levels to the volume of calls for service. Typically, police calls for service are significantly higher on Friday and Saturday nights between 4 p.m. and 4 a.m. Having a pool of officers paid to only work a ten-hour shift each Friday and Saturday night allows agencies to only pay for that increased level of staffing when it’s needed.

Both the House and the Senate have passed Senate Bill 5424, which could provide that flexibility. It now should be signed into law. The bill allows peace officers who have completed probation, already served in full-time service, and established their competency to opt into a part-time position. This ensures that officers who opt for flexible schedules are fully competent and will retain their level of competence while having the flexibility to manage work and family responsibilities. Each police agency can decide if they want to utilize this opportunity for their workforce and for how long officers can serve part-time.

We hope the governor will sign this policy, creating true systemic change, not just more window dressing. It sends a clear message that family responsibilities are not merely tolerated but actively supported.

With flexible work schedules available, officers are less likely to face the choice of sacrificing their family, their profession, or their wellness. SB 5424 will improve staffing and diversity in policing, ensuring that police families can thrive and that officers are rested and better able to serve the community.

Sen. John Lovick, D-Mill Creek, represents the 44th Legislative District. He is a former Snohomish County Sheriff.

Sue Rahr served 33 years with the King County Sheriff’s Office and nine years as the executive director of the Washington State Criminal Justice Training Commission. She co-authored “From Warriors to Guardians — Recommitting American Police Culture to Democratic Ideals.”