After reviewing City Manager Jerry Moss’ list “What the City Manager would like to have in a Police Chief”, the discussion on Monday turned to oversight of off-duty police officers.
Off-duty security work is common practice in law enforcement to supplement pay. In Henderson, off-duty security pays $22 per hour, more than the take-home pay of most officers. The type of security work in demand by most businesses must be done by sworn law enforcement officers in the jurisdiction of the officer, and the officer providing the security is responsible for withholding and paying taxes from his or her security wages.
The discussion was stimulated by an op-ed piece from the Raleigh News & Observer entitled Off-duty oversight regarding the supervision of police officers who do security work for extra income during non-scheduled hours. The article concerned problems in the Raleigh Police Department’s supervision of officers working off-duty security. It was distributed by Human Resources Committee member Lynn Harper.
After distributing the article, Harper said that Raleigh is investigating whether its officers are exceeding the rule regarding working no more than fourteen hours per day on- or off-duty. She said that the city needs [a chief] who is capable and willing to limit work if it involves state law, as it appears to, according to the article.
Henderson City Council member Lonnie Davis, who also attended the meeting, asked if the committee was saying that the chief should be able to mange off-duty time. Harper responded that if it is a state law, then [the city] is responsible for it.
“It is, Mr. Davis,” council member Elissa Yount affirmed. She said that it was found that Raleigh had a lax system. She added that she was concerned with the city’s liability.
City Manager Jerry Moss told members that officers do have to check with the Henderson police chief and tell him that they are working security. He stated, however, that he too was concerned about the liability put upon the city when the officers are working security.
If officers have a city uniform and a city weapon, Moss said, and they pursue a suspect out of the door of the establishment by which they are employed, they become city officers.
If they get hurt, Moss asked, whose worker’s compensation is it on?
According to Moss, that is the nature of the concern.
Moss suggested that contracts be drawn up with employers spelling out that they assume the liability. He stated that the North Carolina League of Municipalities is concerned because they carry the bulk of Henderson’s insurance.
No firm decision regarding the issue was reached during the meeting.