CITY HALL — Police union head Dean Angelo Sr. is calling on officers to forgo overtime on the Labor Day weekend for their own family benefit and overall peace of mind, saying "it's not a job action."
The local Fraternal Order of Police union raised eyebrows a month ago with a memo calling for officers to resist overtime on the Labor Day weekend. President Dean Angelo Sr. explained earlier this month in an interview with DNAinfo that it was not about making a statement, but about calling on officers to pay heed to their own well being.
"I didn't say don't do it. I didn't say refuse to do it," Angelo insisted. "I'm asking them to consider to refrain from putting your name in a hat to work your days off. Because they've been doing it all summer. They haven't seen their kids. When they're home, they're sleeping.
"Their spouses have it up to their eyebrows," he added. "It's not good for your family life. It's not good for your marital life. It's not good for your time with your kids. So that's why, in this last week of the summer, we're asking them in this one final week before your kids go back to school, stay home," he said.
"Don't put in to work a day off. Burn some burgers in the backyard. Take the kids to some movies. Take your wife out to dinner. Cook your husband a meal."
Angelo added, "That's what it's about. It's not like we're trying to send a message to somebody. This is not a job action."
"We take so much for granted, and actually police officers are taken for granted so much. Stay home where you're appreciated, and stay home with your kids, because guess what? Tuesday, they're going to school."
Police Supt. Eddie Johnson has been sympathetic to the plight of overworked officers, while adding that "if we want to show support for our officers, then our responsibility and our oath is to be out there backing each other up out on the streets. Because that's what we do. The biggest way to show support for your fellow officer is to be there when they need you."
Suggesting that overtime could be mandatory, Johnson has insisted that "we will ensure there will be no operational interruption during that holiday period."
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