Chicago police measure morale with survey
Officers say privately that morale is at all-time low under Supt. Jody Weis
By Angela Rozas | Tribune reporter / www.chicagotribune.com
May 18, 2009
For months, Chicago police officers have been saying privately that morale at the department is at an all-time low. Now Supt. Jody Weis wants to see just how true that may be.
The department launched an online survey of its members last week, hoping to determine how they feel about morale and stress on the job. The survey, conducted with the help of University of Illinois at Chicago researchers, is intended to examine how well pilot programs for alternative shifts are going but also give Weis a look at overall morale, said Bill Dougherty, first vice president of the Fraternal Order of Police, which represents rank-and-file officers.
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“We want to provide the best workplace environment for our employees,” Weis said in a statement. “That is why we are interested in the experiences of our department members and how they are affected by everyday work issues. We encourage everyone to fill out the survey in an open and honest manner.”
The department and UIC are promising that those who participate in the survey won’t be identified, although they will have to input a code to allow the department to measure responses by years of service and unit.
Though the FOP helped draft the survey, Dougherty said the union hasn’t endorsed the survey for its members because it wasn’t allowed to take part in the collection of the surveys.
