Associations and Police Officers

This study examined associations established to serve the interests of law enforcement officers. The purpose of this examination was to assess the perceptions of members of law enforcement officers associations of the activities and policies of such associations.

A summary of the study, including the major findings of the research performed, is presented in this chapter. Additional study findings developed through the use of an open-ended questionnaire item also are addressed. The study findings are discussed, and the conclusions drawn from these findings are stated. Lastly, two sets of recommendations are presented in this chapter. The first set of recommendations is related to the application of the study findings by law enforcement officers and law enforcement officers associations. The second set of recommendations is directed toward future research in the area investigated.

Data for this study were collected from a sample of active duty public law enforcement officers in Cook County, Illinois. While the population from which the sample included law enforcement officers from all 129 public jurisdictions in Cook County invested with policing powers, 98 percent of the 254 subjects included in the research sample were members of municipal (counties, cities, and townships) police departments.

The population of public law enforcement officers in Cook County approximated 17,5

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le 28.9 percent indicated some degree of satisfaction. Overall, the mean response was negative. Research Question Four Research question four asked the following: Are there significant relationships between officers' attitudes towards law enforcement associations and selected demographic variables (the officers' age, number of years they have been in police work, size of the agency they are associated with, level of government that employs them, the total yearly dues they pay to belong to such associations, and whether or not they have ever approached an association for help with a problem)? In relation to the effectiveness of law enforcement officers associations in negotiating wage levels, no useful predicting equation was developed. The statistically significant independent variables--respondent age and respondent experience in seeking assistance from law enforcement officers associations--explained only 8.7 percent of response variations. In relation to the effectiveness of law enforcement officers associations in negotiating insurance benefits, no useful predicting equation was developed. The statistically significant independent variables--jurisdictional level of the employing organization and respondent experience in
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Approximate Word count = 1671
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page)

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