It’s just not fair that probation gets a safety retirement! I’m sure you have heard the old saying
“if I had a nickel for every time (insert
witty, sometimes arrogant remark here)”! Well, here it comes again. If I had a nickel for every time
someone said how lucky I am to be being able to retire at age 50 (or 55 or 57,
now depending on the pension reform and your employers
version) I usually respond with a smile and patronize them with ”you’re right, I’m lucky”.
After that, I continue the conversation
but fall into my own thoughts at the same time. Initially my brain jumps right to
“idiot” or “moron” or “did they really say that or are they just being an a$$hole”?
This all happens within a matter of seconds. As I walk away, my own self-doubt
creeps into the logical side of my brain and wonders. Am I lucky to retire at such an early
age? Do I deserve to retire at an age well before most are allowed to get their
gold watch?
These thoughts quickly vanish as I
contemplate the absurdity of these questions.
Here are just 4 reasons why probation officers get to retire “so young” and are (or should be if you are not!) considered safety or law enforcement category for retirement.
1. Stress
You would think that this one would be a no brainer. There are people out there that think they have stressful jobs. Unless you are a police officer, front line combat grunt, air traffic controller or a sky-diving instructor, everyone else, please sit down.
“But you don’t know man, I’ve got deadlines and a lot of pressure on me at my job, why do probation officers retire before I get to?”
And I get that. I really do. But, really?
I will spare everyone the same old “we face armed felons and don’t know if we are going home at the end of our shift mantra.” That is a big part of the job.
It should be blatantly obvious to everyone. Oh and I’m quite sure if you screw up, or have a perceived screw up, at work it won’t cause the city you work in to riot or change your industries culture on a global level. Does it happen often in our industry? Not really, but it hangs there in our minds. Potentially affecting our decision making and slowing our reaction times.
This applies to probation officers as much as police officers. Where cops deal with all of the population, we deal with all of the people that cause them the most problems. They are who we supervise. We have to go to their homes, armed or not. We have to hold them accountable, often by arresting them.
Plus there is compassion fatigue. It is draining working with the population that we work with. Full of mental health issues, addiction issues, etc., this is a difficult population. You have to allow yourself to open up and care about people to be effective at your job and this takes a heavy toll, regardless of how well you take care of yourself.
2. Schedule
It sucks. I’m not talking about the building rats (PO’s who never leave the building). I’m talking about task force work. You are always on call.
I have worked days and nights, holidays, birthdays, elections, hurricanes, and high school plays. I have worked 30 hours without sleep and have come back to work 20 more with only a few hours of sleep in between.
While most PO’s never work in a task force, there are a lot doing shift work. That takes it’s toll.
3. The uniform
While most probation officers don’t have a designated uniform, it is ridiculously uncomfortable wearing a protective vest and 30 pounds of law enforcement gear. Whether it’s in a carrier/tactical outer cover and/or on a duty belt, it effects the way you sit, stand, and walk. It creates injury.
4. The exposure to
unspeakable suffering
It eventually comes up. You’ll get asked if you had ever seen a dead body. Other than your grandma at her funeral, most have not. There are things in this world that humans are not meant to see or experience.
As mentioned from reason #1, law enforcement is a highly stressful and dangerous occupation. New PO’s arrive in this profession with an eagerness that is almost unrivaled in any other job. “I’m going to change the world, one probationer at a time”.
Until they see their first dead baby. Or they have a probationer murdered that they’ve been working with for months or years. Or one of their co-workers or one of the police officers they work with in their community is murdered.
The seduction of becoming a probation officer and serving the greater good enables the new PO to overlook the inherent dangers and traumatic scenes that he or she may face or see.
As they become fully immersed in the law enforcement culture, the old life they had prior to becoming a probation officer begins to fade away. They are forever changed by the things they experience in the work we do. It becomes harder to relate to the mundane realities of the lives of people that don’t work in law enforcement.
I am definitely not the same
person that I was when I started this journey into law enforcement as a
probation officer. I am jaded. My filter isn’t the same as it was near the
beginning of all this. I don’t look at
people the same way. I sit with my back
to the door, just in case. And how many
of you have an emergency plan for your family for dealing with potential
problems with people you’ve supervised in public? That surely isn’t something that those
normally complaining about our early retirement have to worry about.
Stay safe!!
P. O. Doe
#probation
#probationuncovered
Twitter - @PODoe2015
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/probationuncovered/
Email - probationuncovered@gmail.com
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