Employee Discipline Models Within Law Enforcement

Employee Discipline Models within Law Enforcement

Abstract

In the 13th edition of Human Resource Management, Dessler states “The employer wants its discipline process to be both effective (in terms of discouraging unwanted behavior) and fair.” Within law enforcement there is a second facet added to the employee behavior, public trust. The United States Department of Justice recognizes this extra dimension to police discipline. “How police officers are disciplined for acts of misconduct affects how the community views the police.” (U.S. D.o.J. 2008.) As public servants, police commanders are in the precarious situation of balancing public trust against the trust of the officers who serve underneath them. Modern law enforcement history is littered with police misconduct which has led to public mistrust. Senior police staff members have numerous options available when deciding upon a discipline model, including methods which attempt to predict misconduct. By choosing an appropriate method, which can be greatly influenced by the community they serve, police departments can create a discipline model that promotes positive outcomes.

Introduction

It is important for law enforcement administrators to have confidence in the people they promote to supervisory roles, as administrators cannot be logistically involved in all daily personnel and street supervision decisions. This is multiplied when there are numerous levels of rank within the agency. This highlights the importance of the role played by sergeants, and lower level command staff, in terms of discipline and ensuring affective leadership to prevent, or early intervention, when issues arise.

The majority of employee infractions can be dealt with quickly and informally, which helps to build trust between an officer and his/her supervisor. An example of this type of infringement is not cleaning uniform boots or submitting a report with numerous grammatical errors. When the infraction rises...