Laurel: To finding balance. Many police departments have struggled with filling open positions and retaining officers. At the same time, a number of officers have been stepping away from law enforcement in recent years. Part of the reason has been about pay, but another major factor has been burnout and a lack of work-life balance.
Local police departments are addressing this by giving officers more time and cutting back on overtime through scheduling changes. The solution is scrapping eight-hour shifts in favor of 12-hour ones.
Although each workday is longer, it means officers work three days instead of five. It also can mean more hours are ultimately covered for communities.
This represents the best kind of brainstorming. We need more of it.
Lance: To trashing history. Eventually, the Pittsburgh Pirates organization should do something right if only by accident. “Eventually” doesn’t seem to be coming anytime soon.
Since the home opener April 4, the errors have been unforced and embarrassing. There was the removal of a Roberto Clemente logo in PNC Park below the right-field foul pole. It was replaced with an ad for Surfside vodka iced tea drinks.
The social media response Saturday was immediate. Pirates president Travis Williams fell on his sword Sunday, saying it was his responsibility, an “honest mistake.” No disrespect to the late Pirates’ legend was intended.
But then Tuesday, the disrespect was redoubled. It didn’t hit at a player. It hit directly at fans. In 1999, the Pirates began selling bricks to memorialize loved ones or special moments forever with the team. The “Bucco Bricks” cost $75 to $150 and let people become a part of PNC Park in a real and meaningful way. It wasn’t just their team. It was also their park.
That is until KDKA-TV first reported some bricks had been removed and discarded at a recycling center.
The Pirates organization said it was just due to deterioration and wear, and they would be replaced. It had happened before, they said. A more permanent display was in the making.
Maybe that’s true. Maybe it only feels like spin after getting caught literally throwing away people’s memories.
But the Pirates’ front office needs to recognize there comes a point when people stop believing the spin. If, in the midst of all the hoopla over this year’s changes, the team had said the bricks were being removed and replaced to keep them part of the park, that would feel genuine.
Doing so only after getting caught feels like arguing with the umpire when you know you’re out.