Female officers and pregnancy...

[AlexJay]

Hey everyone! I am wanting to get some feedback from ladies who were on regular patrol and got pregnant. This was a planned pregnancy but it didn't dawn on the to sort out the specifics until it actually happened!

When did you opt to take a light duty position? Did you follow your heart or doctors orders? Did your department make you right away? Any other light to shine on the topic?

I have already advised my LT and Chief, so that someone is aware, but I don't know when I should get off patrol. I am actually a school resource officer and it's not uncommon for me to have to deal with a fight or conduct a restraint. Not to mention on the "what ifs" that come with the profession.

Thanks in advance!

[orangebottle]

Our department's policy is light duty as immediately as possible upon notification.

[Kraut0783]

Ours too....last thing admin wants is to have an officer lose a baby.

[not.in.MY.town]

Hey everyone! I am wanting to get some feedback from ladies who were on regular patrol and got pregnant. This was a planned pregnancy but it didn't dawn on the to sort out the specifics until it actually happened!

When did you opt to take a light duty position? Did you follow your heart or doctors orders? Did your department make you right away? Any other light to shine on the topic?

I have already advised my LT and Chief, so that someone is aware, but I don't know when I should get off patrol. I am actually a school resource officer and it's not uncommon for me to have to deal with a fight or conduct a restraint. Not to mention on the "what ifs" that come with the profession.

Thanks in advance!

What did your LT and Chief say when you told them? They SHOULD have policies in place and answers to your questions...

[Kraut0783]

Our department puts you on light duty immediately upon notification, they just don't want to take the chance some freak incident causes a loss. If you department has no policy, check with the HR department for the city you work for....some dept's don't have separate policies from the city.

[just joe]

Pregnant officers are removed from patrol immediately upon notification.

[tanksoldier]

Any department not run by morons will put you on modified/ light duty the instant you inform... and if you fail to inform when you know, you’ll probably be in hack when they do find out. Check your policies, I bet this is covered. Morality aside, the liability is enormous.

Nobody in their right mind is going to knowingly put the mother AND infant at risk.

[retired1995]

All of this assumes that AlexJay is a member of a department in which light duty or modified duty is an option. What about the nearly 60% of all US law enforcement agencies that are not even staffed for 24/7 on-duty service? What about all the other agencies in which placing one officer on modified duty schedule requires everyone else to accept more crap shifts or assignments for the duration? How long should the modified duty schedule be maintained (9 months gestation, perhaps 3,6,9, or 12 months post-birth), while everyone else on the duty roster keeps carrying the load?

OK, I am a very old guy, and I have always adhered to the "team" concept. If you are going to be a member of the team you have to be there for your teammates and carry your share of the load. Feel free to call me insensitive, or chauvinistic, or whatever other label you choose to apply. The fact remains that you applied for a position of public trust, you accepted appointment to that position, and now you want everyone else on the team to carry your end of the workload while you pursue another part of your life "for a while, because I need to do this, etc, etc, etc.

I ran a small department for years. Everyone got their vacations and days off because I stepped in and filled those shifts. I went over 6 years without a weekend, vacation, or two days off in a row at one time so my people were taken care of. I sincerely hope that your co-workers, your supervisors, and your boss step up for you now, but I also hope that you remember everything they do for you in your time of need every day in the future, and return the commitment every chance you get.

Best regards.

[SHU]

The needs of the unborn child are 1000% more important than the need of coverage. Any department that cannot function according to that should be disbanded.

[beachcop05]

Some departments are small and don’t have any options for light duty.

[retired1995]

The needs of the unborn child are 1000% more important than the need of coverage. Any department that cannot function according to that should be disbanded.

This comment indicates that about 60% of all law enforcement agencies in the US should be disbanded. That is more than half of all the cities, towns, and counties in the country. Granted, we are discussing places of low population and limited tax base/budget, but the fact remains that we are talking about denying law enforcement services to a huge sector of the country for the sole reason that those folks are not able to fund the same levels of staffing that larger communities can support.

I will readily admit that my comments above are contrary to all the modern, enlightened social policies that have evolved in the US. What I will not admit is that discussion of such issues should ever be denied because of discomfort or emotional reactions. The issues I have raised are the REALITY THAT EXISTS, not the FAIRY TALE that politically correct social engineers want us to believe.

Those who reside in major metropolitan areas may be accustomed to a strong police presence and timely responses to every problem. Those who reside in the rest of the country are accustomed to seeing cops only very infrequently and response times that are measured in multiples of hours, or sometimes days. Attempting to apply the same broad guidelines to every department is ridiculous at best, dangerous at every level.

[SHU]

And I stand by my comments. Departments that cannot function without taking into account the law and welfare of its employees should be disbanded. Every small town department is within a county or state that has an agency that can respond. Whether that be in a day or in a week. In my job I have been assigned to details along the southwest border in extremely remote areas. The people who live in those areas know the risks and tend to be very self reliant. They almost always have weapons and know how to use them to protect themselves. When they do call for law enforcement its usually to document a situation that they have already remedied. One way or another.

[beachcop05]

And I stand by my comments. Departments that cannot function without taking into account the law and welfare of its employees should be disbanded. Every small town department is within a country or state that has an agency that can respond. Whether that be in a day or in a week. In my job I have been assigned to details along the southwest border in extremely remote areas. The people who live in those areas know the risks and tend to be very self reliant. They almost always have weapons and know how to use them to protect themselves. When they do call for law enforcement its usually to document a situation that they have already remedied. One way or another.

You work in a large agency where people can take time off all the time and it doesn't affect staffing. If a female is out for 9 months in your agency due to a pregnancy, no one will even feel it and it won't affect staffing.

However if you work in an agency that only has 10 officers, and you lose an officer for 9 months, that is a major shift/change for the department, and other people will have to step up and work overtime to cover the open shift for 9 months. A department with 10 officers is about 50-60% of the departments in the country, by the way.

[SHU]

You work in a large agency where people can take time off all the time and it doesn't affect staffing. If a female is out for 9 months in your agency due to a pregnancy, no one will even feel it and it won't affect staffing.

However if you work in an agency that only has 10 officers, and you lose an officer for 9 months, that is a major shift/change for the department, and other people will have to step up and work overtime to cover the open shift for 9 months. A department with 10 officers is about 50-60% of the departments in the country, by the way.

There is a lot of truth to what you are saying but guys can be out for 9 months as well. I've torn my ACL and meniscus in a foot pursuit and was out about that long so it can happen to anyone. But I've never been in a small agency and had to work OT for the reason we are talking about here. Maybe if I was I'd be singing a different tune.

[not.in.MY.town]

This thread is one year old. I'm pretty sure the OP has given birth by now....

It's still a worthwhile discussion and might help someone else in the same situation, but any advice to the OP is moot.

[Iowa #1603]

. Maybe if I was I'd be singing a different tune.

You would be.

Here is a very current article about a small agency in the upper Midwest. I can guarantee that every member of the agency would go through hell and back for the boss and their co-workers.

THIS is a fact of life for the majority of agencies in the country

They MAKE it work


https://www.nbcnews.com/video/inside...GZdcRGP2zrqWK8