The Tribune

THE Royal Bahamas Police Force has started to take officers off the 12-hour work shift, introduced in September in an attempt to get crime under control, The Tribune understands.

Well placed police sources said detectives, officers of the Central Detective Unit (CDU) and the Drug Enforcement Unit (DEU) are no longer working the shifts, though their jobs often demand that they work irregular hours.

When asked whether the 12-hour system was being wound down, Commissioner Ellison Greenslade and Police Staff Association (PSA) chairman Dwight Smith declined to discuss the matter.

Mr Greenslade said: “I will not speak to anyone about our rotation system anymore and it was a mistake for me to ever divulge what our system is like or our rotation.

“As Bahamians are preparing to go into the holiday season I want to ensure that they are safe and whatever it takes to keep them safe is what I will do. But I can make one assurance to the Bahamian people and that is as they enter the Christmas Holiday and take to the streets to shop and enjoy merriment I will do whatever it takes to ensure that they are safe while they are out there.”

Following complaints from many officers about the extended hours they are required to work, particularly due to the lack of compensation they are receiving, talks on the matter are now taking place between the association and the Royal Bahamas Police Force.

And while he refused to say whether officers were being taken off the 12-hour shift, Mr Smith did confirm that the PSA is no longer considering taking legal action against the government at this time.

“I just came from the police headquarters after a meeting with the commissioner of police, which was good as always,” he said, declining to say if officers would be compensated for working the longer shifts.

He also said lawyer Wayne Munroe “is still looking at the legal ramifications of what has happened.”

He declined to comment on the physical and mental well-being of the officers and said he is awaiting the conclusion of Mr Munroe’s investigations before providing further comments.

Last month he said he was insulted that the government did not come to the table to discuss the concerns of the officers and that his Association would seek legal action if they didn’t hear from government officials.

Earlier this month he said the Association would hire a physician to examine officers. This, he said yesterday, has not yet taken place.

Expressing concern for the physical well being of the officers, PSA lawyer Wayne Munroe had previously said the RBPF might be liable for creating a dangerous system of work for officers.