O/R wants to know (economy)

[Reca]

O/R wants to know: how is the economy affecting your work?

[adroitcuffs]

Other than the 18% pay cut and 30% reduction in staff handling an increase in violent crimes?

[StoleIt]

Oh this could be fun.

Day to day...not at all.

Long term...
-Our civilian instructors had to change from being contractors to civil service employees (thanks Obama). In theory this would save money right? Well no, in practice it doesn't. Most took 20k pay cuts but the higher ups (GS-15, etc) got massive pay increases. And they start accruing time for a second pension (imagine having two pensions by the time you are 65).

-No more pay raises, due to cost of living/etc, for the foreseeable future (but I bet your ass Politicians will get em)

-Our BAH just went down due to the housing market, yet (ironically) nobodies rent or mortgage rates lowered at all...

-New jets. We have been struggling (mostly due to political games and our own ineptitude) to get a replacement for our 1955 era tanker (KC-X). We currently have somewhere around 450 tails...and will be lucky to get half of that number in KC-X's. Ditto goes to replacing the F-15, we have 630...and are getting 180ish F-22's...that seems smart.

-In an effort to stay in budget the USAF is drastically reducing it's personnel. A lot of officers also. This wouldn't be a problem if we didn't have to still do the same work but now with less people. All my training squadrons were at 70% manning top. It's really hurting the people. Working 12+ hour days and then having to give up weekends as well.

The list goes on...

[IMGreat101]

Grocery/Meat is recession proof. We are busier than ever.

[keith720]

No raise in over 3 years, and eight furlough days a year. The furlough days make no sense at all. When I'm on a furlough day, another Captain fills in for me. Then, when they are on a furlough day, I fill in for them! We have 300 officers at our facility that work twenty-four-hour posts that have to be filled. That amounts to 3200 positions vacated each year. Of those, at least 2800 are filled by officers on overtime making time-and-a-half. Thus, the3200 translates to 4200! What sense does that make!

[Sam]

I lost a job making $125 k a year, Now I am working but making 1/2 of what I have made for the last 15 years. OBAMA SUCKS~~

[213th]

I think cable is mostly recession proof. We've seen a bit of a decline in residential customers, but an increase in commercial accounts. Me personally, since 2008, have seen abt 40% pay increases. Although I just got an assistant supervisor position so that accounts for about half the pay raises.

[SPD]

- reduction in staff (about 10%, mostly people retiring to save layoffs of younger officers)
-pay cuts (several years in a row)
-training division dissolved, so almost no in-house training
-no new cars in last 3 years, none in the foreseeable future
-training and ammo budget cut in half
-no out of town training authorized (unless you're a female who used to be married to one of the command staff or command staff - go figure)
-mileage restrictions on cars based on nothing
-OT almost cut out - many shifts running short because of people having to trade back time
-restrictions in how many officers can show up to calls (yes - that's right - they don't want "too many" officers to show up - figure that one out)


More that don't come to mind right now.

[MacLean]

-restrictions in how many officers can show up to calls (yes - that's right - they don't want "too many" officers to show up - figure that one out)

WTF?

[lewisipso]

None. We have fared well. We usually receive a 10% pay raise per year but received a 5% last year. This has been the only difference.

[121Traffic]

You get a 10% raise every year? No top out??

[ChesCopPodz]

It pains me to say it, but I have to give command staff a little credit. The chief had his crystal ball out, because he let quite a few empty positions (retire, quit, fired etc) go unfilled predicting that the city would want him to slash his budget. We haven't had a raise in 4 years, our insurance premium went up 4%, and some of our equipment isn't being replaced at the optimal interval, but no layoffs or pay cuts.

[creolecop]

We haven't felt any at all, I am very grateful due to all the things I read on forums and police related articles. If anything things have improved for us and the minor scratches our local economy received is healing nicely. Our tax base is up and people are spending, homes are going up, apartment complexes are poping up everywhere and jobs in my area has increased with new trade business arriving. As a matter of fact my dept last year in 09 bought a surplus of 17 new 10' V8 Hemi chargers in addition to the other vehicles they purchased. We also bought some new big ticket items, one being an airplane, recently bought another new full size state of the art mobile command center. #1 has assured us we are in great financial shape and nothing will change for us. We still get our health insurance premiums paid by the agency, life insurance among other bennies, we have take homes that you can use at your leisure off duty, with no fuel payment requirements, or monthly payments for off duty use. Word is that hasn't even been a thought conceived. They are in the process of buying us new MDT's for our units (replacing the laptops) that have the screen and keyboard seperated. Our oldest unit on the road is an 07. They also bought 10 brand new units to be line units (when your take home is in the shop you can sign out one of those) in addition to the 06-08's already on the line. We are very lucky and I'm thankful

[SPD]

WTF?

Yes. That gem is an attempt by command staff and supervisors to create the image that we don't have a bunch of officers on the street. "Too many" officers showing up might give the wrong impression. Who cares if we might actually NEED more officers.

Another good one - no officer initiated activity near bar closing time by my shift, since we won't be available for all the fight calls. So - don't stop DUIs or FI drunks etc. Neat one that, since that's when all the DUIs are out, most of our assault calls, burglaries happen, etc.

I don't get it either, but they're my bosses. They make the "important" decisions and decide if I get to keep my job. I'm not under the delusion that if I don't follow their wishes, they can't find a way to run me out of this job. So - we do as we're told.

[Buttercup]

For a while one segment of the food industry was suffering quite a bit - people weren't going out to restaurants and that filtered down to the suppliers. However, that situation forced other segments of the industry to really ramp up their product innovation, so things have been on an upturn for us.

[Cidp24]

No raise this year, probably none next year, budget cuts in some areas but no really bad problems.

[Captain America]

No raise this year, probably none next year, budget cuts in some areas but no really bad problems.

Hell , if that is the criteria we've been in a recession for the last 10 years.....

[Jenna]

Hell , if that is the criteria we've been in a recession for the last 10 years.....

No wonder the Swamp hasn't gotten worse as a result of the current recession.

[pgg]

My old agency we took a 20% pay cut. OT was eliminated. Not 24 hours anymore. Only CHP was 24 hours after that with one unit on in an almost 4000 sq mile county. A homicide took several hours to get someone there because no one could be called out because of budget restrictions. My new agency is great. We are hiring another officer soon also.