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Department of Public Safety officers feel their hands are tied over scheduling and staffing as burglaries surge near Syracuse University’s campus.

The department shifted to a 12-hour schedule in January while the university was searching for a chief to replace Bobby Maldonado. The department switched back to the 10-hour schedule in July after Craig Stone assumed office, DPS Officers Union President Dominick Poerioli said.

“Every time we get a new chief, they tend to change our schedule,” Perioli said.

Under the 12-hour schedule, officers went on duty at noon or midnight with no gap between each shift, Perioli said. Under the 10-hour schedule, officers on duty are divided into three shifts that overlap. At certain times, only one shift is on duty.

“(C Watch) goes home when all the burglaries are occurring, leaving us greatly understaffed to combat the crime and burglaries,” Perioli said.

Christine Weber, SU’s communications manager of campus safety and emergency management services, said in an email that the 10-hour schedule had been the norm several years before Maldonado’s departure. But Weber said that the 12-hour schedule was used temporarily due to the pandemic.

“The former chief made that decision based on feedback from officers and considerations of operational effectiveness,” Weber wrote. “A 10-hour schedule allows officers three consecutively scheduled days off, providing consistency and stability in their schedules.”

During a Student Association meeting on Monday, Stone said there were 38 burglaries reported in the areas around SU and LeMoyne College since the end of August. According to DPS’s daily incident and crime log, 13 burglaries occurred between 3 a.m. to 7 a.m., when officers on the “C Watch” shift go home.

This is not the first time burglaries surged under Stone’s tenure at SU so far. From April 16 to May 1, DPS announced 12 burglary cases occurred near SU campus.

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Perioli said DPS is always low-staffed, which is consistent with the nationwide trend with police departments and law enforcement agencies in general. The shortage of officers contributes to the department’s vulnerability in combating crimes near campus, he said.

“I (was) hired in 2011. We’ve never had over 30 individuals working,” Perioli said. “It leaves vulnerability to the surrounding campus and area.”

When talking about staffing limits, one should also take account of other factors, said Kara Zarnowski, the union’s vice president.

“With this 10-hour shift, you need at least 36 solid people, without anybody taking vacation time, sick time or anything in that nature,” Zarnowski said. “We don’t have that.”

Both Perioli and Zarnowski said they are now working around 75 to 80 hours per week to compensate for the lack of staffing under the current 10-hour schedule. Under the 12-hour schedule, each officer alternated between 36 and 48 hours per week unless they were required or wanted to work more, Perioli said.

“It’s pretty much understandable and it’s come to a consensus that the 12-hour schedule works — we have more staffing,” he said. “It puts more boots on the ground to combat crimes like burglaries and everything else in the east neighborhood and on campus.”

Perioli said the union voted unanimously to keep the 12-hour schedule, but the department ignored multiple grievances the union submitted.

“The department believes that it is in the best interest of the community we serve to do our best to provide efficient coverage with the resources we have, and the 10-hour schedule accomplishes that goal far more so than the current 12-hour schedule,” DPS stated in response to the union’s grievance, according to a union press release issued on Sept 14.

Weber said in her statement that resuming a 10-hour schedule helps officers better conduct their duties.

“From a safety perspective, research supports that officers are at their best when they are rested and not overworked,” Weber wrote. “Considering many of them work special events and often pick up additional shifts, resuming a 10-hour schedule guarantees they are not in the field past the point of fatigue, thus prioritizing their well-being and the safety of our community.”

Perioli disagreed with the department’s reasoning. The preference of a majority of the officers should determine the schedule, he said.

In its press release, the union opposed the schedule change and its implications for campus safety. The union filed a grievance to DPS on May 23 regarding the current 10-hour schedule that relies heavily on overtime and mandated overtime to meet a minimum staffing level, the union’s release said.

“We appreciate the concerns raised by the DPS Officers Union. We remain in close communication and have an open line of dialogue with the union to ensure our collective commitment to our officers’ safety, well-being and employee satisfaction, as well as the safety and security of our campus,” Weber wrote in the statement.

While sharing the frustration toward the schedule change and denied grievances, Perioli said there’s little the union could do until it negotiates a new contract.

“It’s frustrating because we know the schedule does not work. It’s gonna fail and it’s already failed — we have 75 burglaries in July,” Perioli said. “Somebody can lose their life.”

Published on September 27, 2022 at 11:18 pm

Contact Francis: btang05@syr.edu | @francis_towne