Next will be the military. lol Greece has definitely had some serious problems financially and when it’s police force has to do extreme measures like this, it makes you wonder.
Now here is the thing. The whole rule of ‘you get what you pay for’ or ‘you pay peanuts, you get monkeys’, definitely applies to this situation. When you reduce salaries and benefits, what incentive does the police have to do well? To actually police a community, a community that has decided to lower their salary. It reminds me of places like New Orleans which had some of the lowest paid cops in the country. And when hurricane Katrina hit, a lot of those NOLA cops just left.
Also, if you look at the photo below, those are Greek law enforcement involved with riot control. These guys have been very busy trying to maintain law and order in a very angry country. The last thing that country should do is make their police angry by messing with their pay.
Now on to the ‘cops for hire’ scheme. You see this happen in one form or the other all over the world. It’s just these guys are being very open and business-like about it. Of course Greece has a long history of hoplites for hire and I am sure Xenophon would approve of this modern scheme. lol But I do share the concern that once you get into this game, will they be able to effectively protect and serve the community, or will they become more concerned with protecting paying clients?
On the other hand, that community should take note. If your police are renting their services out, maybe that might be a hint that you are not paying them enough? –Matt
Greece offers “cop-for-hire” service to raise cash
Tue, Apr 10 2012
In a bid to raise cash, Greek police are offering a 30 euro ($39) per hour “cop-for-hire” scheme for private companies or citizens seeking protection at special events.
Police said the service was provided only under special circumstances, such as cases of high-security risk, and that revenues would be used to fund police equipment and boost the state budget. It used to be available for free before a debt crisis hit the country.
“We will provide these services only in exceptional cases and only if we have the available assets and staff. We’ll first make sure that no citizen is deprived of police protection,” police spokesman Thanassis Kokkalakis said on Tuesday.
Hiring a police officer for an hour costs 30 euros, according to the law, which has entered into force. A police vehicle escort, for example for the transfer of art works or other sensitive material, will cost an additional 40 euros per hour and a motorcycle escort 20 euros.
For larger-scale operations, police patrol boats can be hired for 200 euros and helicopters for an hourly 1,500-euro fee.
Along with other public sector workers, Greece’s 55,000 police officers have suffered wage cuts and layoffs amid austerity measures imposed by international lenders in exchange for financial aid.
Story here.
I agree with you when it comes to getting what you pay for, but there are lots of communities that do contract out their law enforcement. Not only that, but I see lots of problems associated with police officers being able to work off-duty jobs. When I lived in Oregon, there were several departments that paid great would rent out their services for community events. It’s a good compromise to provide the community with services if it’s done properly. Unfortunately, there are lots of departments that don’t properly handle this issue.
Comment by SamuelW — Wednesday, April 11, 2012 @ 8:57 PM
I agree with you when it comes to getting what you pay for, but there are lots of communities that do contract out their law enforcement. Not only that, but I see lots of problems associated with police officers being able to work off-duty jobs. When I lived in Oregon, there were several departments that paid great would rent out their services for community events. It’s a good compromise to provide the community with services if it’s done properly. Unfortunately, there are lots of departments that don’t properly handle this issue.
Comment by feraljundi — Saturday, February 2, 2013 @ 11:02 AM