The price we pay

Repay the Risk. It’s a catchy line and in my mind very appropriate! Whoever came up with it, congratulations, it says it all. I’ve said it before and will continue saying it: Who else does what we do? I could list all the things we do, 24/7, while getting abused, assaulted, spat at, misunderstood, scrutinised, slaughtered by the media, and so on. But I know the vast majority of people in this country, this amazing place we call home, have our back.

Our detractors have no issue calling us when they need help but are the first to criticise us when they believe we didn’t provide the service they believe we should give. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the crux of being a police officer. We will always strive to give the best service we can in trying and sometimes horrible circumstances, even though we know we can’t always live up to expectations. So what is our value to Aotearoa? What is the risk we face every day worth to the Government and ultimately the population that voted them in? We can’t strike, nor should we be able to. My mum would be horrified (“Who else does what we do?”). So we are asking to be valued as those who take risks no-one else has to face to keep everyone safe, including those who control the purse strings!

Cloud on the horizon

I hope we get ahead of the line this constabulary pay round, rather than being at the back and getting the scraps like last time. But I fear the disaster occurring on the other side of the world will affect any hope of a favourable outcome. Pretty gloomy, I know. I’m trying to be as upbeat as I can but I can’t shake the feeling that, as much as everyone says we are worth it, the reality is that there is pain on the horizon.

Move along, move along

Has anyone been “moved” to another position recently, and found the “movement” lost among hundreds and hundreds (or more) of Service Centre transactions waiting to be sorted? Not only does it stall the physical placement but it also delays our pay and benefits. Maybe if the centre started using our compulsory Digital Notebook, things might speed up… a less-than-subtle dig at technology folks. No matter how many programs we have, we still need people to input the data so, obviously, more people are needed.

Adding fuel to the fire

The fuel crisis is starting to bite and I sympathise with everyone who has to drive long distances just to get to work. For those who are able to work from home, I hope some common sense prevails and they continue to be allowed to – a return to the status quo until things settle down. You know things are serious when stuff.co.nz has a whole section titled “FUEL”.

Car-less or care less?

I heard someone mention “car-less days” on the radio the other day. I wonder how Police could implement that? We could load up a van with a whole lot of cops, drop them off two at a time at jobs, then pick them up later. We could even use a bus in the metros. Imagine all the “steps” we would notch up on our fitness apps. Great idea if we had enough frontline to do it.