Police staff levels at ‘crisis point,’ union says

Officers raise safety concerns after cuts of 500 since 2010

The union representing Toronto police is alleging that staffing cuts have reached a “crisis point,” leaving officers burned out and the public at risk.

The Toronto Police Association launched a website Monday, saying the force has nearly 500 fewer officers than it did in 2010 and may cut another 400 by 2019.

“Our members are trying to make a bad situation work by trying to do more with less,” said union president Mike McCormack.

“It is causing some concerns around the potential to public safety and officer safety.”

The Toronto Police Service is currently under a three-year freeze on hiring and promotions. The move was one of a series of recommendations in a report released by the police board’s “Transformational Task Force” in January — a group of civilians and officers that’s part of a larger effort to modernize the force and cut police spending.

“The days of more money, resources, staff, etc. are gone,” Toronto Police Service spokesperson Mark Pugash said.

“We have to find a way to do what we do with fewer people, which means we have to be more intelligent, more enterprising, more economical.”

Pugash also said police Chief Mark Saunders recently visited every police unit in the city to answer questions and respond to concerns. When they asked for more front-line officers, Pugash said, Saunders delivered.

The police service has also ensured officers have access to support services to help them cope with a job that’s difficult in the best of times, Pugash said.

“Change makes people anxious,” he said. “So we’re doing it carefully and patiently.”

The Star’s attempts to reach police board members were unsuccessful.

McCormack has previously said the task force’s recommendations are a cost-cutting exercise that would endanger public safety.

In an interview Tuesday, he said the union has tried to reach out to Saunders and the Toronto Police Services board, which oversees the force, about the concerns, but those requests have gone nowhere.

This has led to an increase in crime in 10 of 17 police districts, McCormack said. Though key indicators like homicides are down, McCormack said officers are trying to police an ever-increasing population with fewer staff and time constraints from management.

The effects of that are trickling down to Toronto streets every day, McCormack said. In the city’s northwest Sunday night, for example, police received six reports of gunshots but were too busy to respond right away, he said.

When those delays happen, the public takes out their frustration on whoever eventually arrives, McCormack said.

“It’s the front-line officers who are suffering,” he said.