Moffett, O’Bannon don’t like change

They’re opposed to the idea, but Vicksburg Police Department Chief Tommy Moffett and Deputy Chief Richard O’Bannon have decided &#8220to try for a while” placing uniformed officers on 12-hour shifts.

&#8220Some of the guys have asked for it, but there hasn’t been a real push for it until lately,” O’Bannon said. &#8220So we’re going to try it for a while. I personally don’t care for 12-hour shifts.”

Moffett said he doesn’t like the switch from three daily eight-hour shifts to two daily 12-hour shifts, either, but is willing to experiment.

The change isn’t expected to take effect until Feb. 28, O’Bannon said. Civilian employees and investigators will remain on eight-hour days.

With four new hires sworn in Monday, the number of sworn officers at the police department is 64, not including those on military duty and medical leave. Eighty-seven such positions are budgeted.

The number of active sworn officers had dropped to below 60 this year before supervisors asked the chief and deputy chief to switch to 12-hour shifts. But O’Bannon said the shift change and the drop in employment do not correlate.

&#8220One thing has nothing to do with the other. I can work them eight hours and have eight officers on a shift or I can work them 12 hours and have eight people on a shift. It doesn’t change.”

But the availability of off-duty officers does change, he said.

&#8220With three eight-hour shifts per day, we’d have 24 people. But with two 12-hour shifts per day, we’d have 16 people. If we need to call someone in, we can’t just get anybody.”

Also, officers would work 171.5 hours per 28 days on the new shifts. On eight-hour days, they work 165 hours per 28 days. That means overtime will be paid.

&#8220But we pay overtime now,” O’Bannon said. &#8220We budget for overtime – 150 hours per year, per person.”

This isn’t the first time shift changes have been made since Moffett took over in 2001.

&#8220We’ve worked a number of different shifts since I’ve been here,” O’Bannon said. &#8220It’s easily changed, and it’s all about trying to get more bang for your buck.”

On 12-hour days, officers will work two straight days before taking three straight days off. They would then rotate to working three days in a row before taking two straight days off. That means each month, they’d work 14 days and would be off every other weekend.

&#8220I don’t know how long we’ll try it,” O’Bannon said. &#8220Whether or not 12-hour shifts would be good or bad, I have no idea. I don’t care because it’s not going to affect me at all.”

About 40 patrolmen will switch from three different shifts to two 7 to 7 shifts.

&#8220Some people are already complaining about it,” O’Bannon said. &#8220And others say they like it. Four more people are about to come on board.”

Of those four, three are former Vicksburg police officers, O’Bannon said. The other is from Utica.

Deputies with the Warren County Sheriff’s Department have worked 12-hour shifts since 2004, Sheriff Martin Pace said.

Twenty-four deputies, Pace said, patrol more than 600 square miles. They work 171 hours per 28 days.

&#8220I have four squads in patrol, and they all have the same days off and all work together,” he said. &#8220If A squad is on days then B squad is on nights, and so forth. That gives an absolute even disbursement of manpower throughout the county.”