Indy Metro Police Toy with the Notion of 12-Hour Shifts

Word has it that the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department (IMPD) is considering the institution of 12-hour shift scheduling. Officers currently serving on the middle shift would be moved to either the day or night shift, boosting the number of police on duty at any given time, without incurring any additional staffing costs to the department. In return for working extended shifts, the officers would get a three-day weekend every other week. Their current schedule requires them to work 8-hour shifts for six consecutive days, followed by three days off.

Those who oppose the idea cite officer exhaustion as the number-one reason. Fatigue due to working an extended shift was thought to be a contributing factor in a fatal crash involving a deputy’s squad car and three bicyclists, two of whom died, in Cupertino, California, on March 9.

IMPD wouldn’t be the first in the greater Indianapolis area to implement the plan. The Carmel Police Department switched to 12-hour shifts in January 2002, and Noblesville officers made the change earlier this year.

What do you think? Are 12-hour shifts a good idea?