The unionization of law enforcement workers for their rights

Introduction

Labor unions play a crucial role in advocating for the rights of their member workers. It was establish to safeguard the rights of the employees from exploitation by their employers and other forms of abuses. The police are the government workers whose duty is to serve and protect the general public. They also deserve better remunerations and working conditions. However, there are problems that may arise if the law enforcement workers are unionized. In this project, the reasons why law enforcement workers should not be unionized will be discussed in detail. The potential consequences of labor unions on the law enforcers also will be discussed.

Do you believe that law enforcement workers in the United States should be unionized? Why or why not?

The role of law enforcers in the United States is to maintain law and order. The responsibility of safeguarding properties and human lives falls into their jurisdiction. As a result of job description and expectations, there has been a debate on whether law enforcement workers should be unionized (Roufa, 2016). The labor unions in the US originated from the trade union movements of the 18th century which advocated for better wages and fair working conditions for workers. In our modern world, the trade unions fights for similar rights and it protects the workers from exploitation, harassment, and other kinds of injustices.

Whereas labor unions would safeguard the rights of the law enforcers, I don’t believe police should have a union. This is mainly because unionizing law enforcement workers would create standoff between them and the government. The union may contribute various problems such as mobilizing law enforcers to strike or sue the government. The government also would have a challenge on instilling discipline among their law enforcers who may violate the law without fear because they are guaranteed a defense by the union (Roufa, 2016). Furthermore, unionizing law enforcers may benefit the union more than the beneficiaries. This is as a result of charges in which every enforcement worker is supposed to pay the union (Roufa, 2016).

What impacts do police unions had on American policing, and how can labor and management work together to assure the public of effective law enforcement?

The police union has negative ramifications on American policing. Law enforcers are not like ordinary workers despite the fact that they have rights that ought to be protected. Unionizing police would prevent them from discharging their duties effectively. This is mainly because their failures and misconduct are guaranteed defense from the labor unions (Roufa, 2016). The police unions would contribute injustices especially victims of police brutality and also prosecution of officers who abuses their authority. Also, it would make it difficult for the authority to suspend officers who disobey the law.

The labor union and the criminal justice system can collaborate together by having a common policy that creates harmony within the two entities thus guaranteeing the general public effective law enforcement. Both entities must agree on the labor union jurisdictions and the rights of the officers that should be defended. Whenever an issue arises, both parties must reach a consensus though dialogue. Such policy should also prevent the union from interfering with authorities’ duties such as maintaining discipline within the police force. Coming up with such policy ensures that officers duties are not interfered with thus the service delivery would be maintained.

Has the Police Officers Bill of Rights discussed in your text provided fair protection to police officers, or are they so restrictive, they prevent management from investigating police misconduct? Why or why not?

In the US, the right of every citizen is defined in the Bill of rights. Just like other Americans, police deserves fair treatment when it comes to remuneration and working conditions. The police officers bill of rights (POBR) was aimed at protecting the rights of police officers from unfair prosecution, termination from service and investigations. However, this bill is not a constitutional amendment and it must not be employed by the labor union. The police job descriptions are different from those of other employees. They are expected to handle different pressures while balancing between their work and family responsibilities. The POBR is very restrictive because it prevents authorities from investigating the officers. As a consequence, it increases misconduct among the officers who would engage in various malpractices without the fear of investigation and prosecution (Roufa, 2016).

Conclusion

The US constitution is very clear on their citizens’ rights. The labor unions have used this constitutional amendment to defend the rights of all workers. I do acknowledge the rights of law enforcement workers should be protected, but the jurisdiction of the labor unions should be defined to avert conflicts of interests that may arise between the policing authority and their workforce. Standoffs and endless lawsuits should be mitigated to avoid negative impact on policing and service delivery.

Chapter 8 Project:

Introduction

Police hotlines / emergency numbers play a crucial role in crime mitigations. It enables the enforcers to instantly respond to the emergency situations. Also, it enables the public to report criminal activities and inquire various issues from the police. However, there are situations in which the general public calls the police for various issues which are not related to crime. The civilians trust the police and they have an assumption that they have capacity to address most of their issues. Some people do so to maintain friendship with the police and some do so because they are uninformed on entities that are supposed to handle specific matters. In this project, the difference between the call girls will be discussed. Both contributes to crime problems because they are venerable groups who can either be lured into the crime, or they can also subjected to brutality and most cases they are also victims of rape and murder.

Describe four reasons why the public calls the police in situations not involving a crime

The law enforcers are expected to respond to a public distress at all times. Therefore they are expected to prepare themselves and anticipate public calls. The reason why the public may call the police in a non-crime situation is because of lack of adequate knowledge on police jurisdictions. Many people have expectations that police can address some of the issues which are not within their jurisdiction (Reid, 2011). The second reason is that members of the public may call police to inquire for other emergency numbers, for instance during medical and disaster situations. Also the public contacts police so as to maintain social boundary (Reid, 2011). Some people call the police to create connection and friendship with them. Finally, the law enforcers are also called at times to come and settle domestic disputes such as noise complaints and family disputes.

Identify the sort of behaviors that might not be considered a crime, yet result in the police being called frequently.

There are situations in which the public may call the police and it does not necessarily involve crime. Since the police lines works 24 hours a day, officers are usually alerted in the case of noise complaints, accidents, and reports on suspicious activities (Reid, 2011). The general public also might call police when in need of an assistance to trace the whereabouts of a lost person. Some of the above situations may not be considered crime simply because the police must ascertain the credibility of the information provided by the informant. They also must conduct an investigation to avert speculations.

Explain the difference between streetwalkers and call girls, and discuss how each might have an impact on order maintenance and peacekeeping, and what that impact might be.

A streetwalker is an individual who solicits for money in exchange of sexual favors. Call girls also engage in similar acts but their activities are rarely detected. Whereas streetwalkers conduct their businesses on the streets, call girls usually target their clients online by advertising themselves over the internet. They are usually mobile and flexible and they usually meet their clients on agreed locations. Prostitution in public places is illegal. Streetwalkers usually engage in illegal behaviors such as noise making, drug abuse and street fights. Both call girls and streetwalkers can provide vital information that can aid the law enforcers in maintaining law and order. Most of them hangs associate with other criminals such as drug dealers among others. Streetwalkers also are available on the streets day and night and might be called upon to testify as witnesses whenever there is an incident in the streets.

Which would have a larger impact on public expectations of the police, and why? Which would seem to have the potential for adding to the crime problem, and why?

Streetwalkers have negative influence on public expectation of the police. This is mainly because they are usually disorderly and are usually seen on the streets both day and night. Because most of them have drug addiction problems, they usually fight and cause a lot of noises. They are potential for adding problems because their behaviors have negative influence on teenagers. They also endanger their lives because they associate with clients who engage in criminal activities.

Conclusion

The general public usually calls the police officers during the time of distress. However, there are situations in which they call the police to report non-criminal issues. The police are supposed to serve and protect the public. Therefore, there should be a policy that fosters interagency collaborations whereby police can refer to the public whenever a case that does not fall under jurisdiction is reported to them. On the other hand, Streetwalkers engages in activities that has negative influence on younger people. They negatively add crime problem because they are targets of murder and rapes among other crimes.