5.3: Problems with a Hierarchy
- Page ID
- 48203
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\(\newcommand{\avec}{\mathbf a}\) \(\newcommand{\bvec}{\mathbf b}\) \(\newcommand{\cvec}{\mathbf c}\) \(\newcommand{\dvec}{\mathbf d}\) \(\newcommand{\dtil}{\widetilde{\mathbf d}}\) \(\newcommand{\evec}{\mathbf e}\) \(\newcommand{\fvec}{\mathbf f}\) \(\newcommand{\nvec}{\mathbf n}\) \(\newcommand{\pvec}{\mathbf p}\) \(\newcommand{\qvec}{\mathbf q}\) \(\newcommand{\svec}{\mathbf s}\) \(\newcommand{\tvec}{\mathbf t}\) \(\newcommand{\uvec}{\mathbf u}\) \(\newcommand{\vvec}{\mathbf v}\) \(\newcommand{\wvec}{\mathbf w}\) \(\newcommand{\xvec}{\mathbf x}\) \(\newcommand{\yvec}{\mathbf y}\) \(\newcommand{\zvec}{\mathbf z}\) \(\newcommand{\rvec}{\mathbf r}\) \(\newcommand{\mvec}{\mathbf m}\) \(\newcommand{\zerovec}{\mathbf 0}\) \(\newcommand{\onevec}{\mathbf 1}\) \(\newcommand{\real}{\mathbb R}\) \(\newcommand{\twovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\ctwovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\threevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cthreevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\mattwo}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{rr}#1 \amp #2 \\ #3 \amp #4 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\laspan}[1]{\text{Span}\{#1\}}\) \(\newcommand{\bcal}{\cal B}\) \(\newcommand{\ccal}{\cal C}\) \(\newcommand{\scal}{\cal S}\) \(\newcommand{\wcal}{\cal W}\) \(\newcommand{\ecal}{\cal E}\) \(\newcommand{\coords}[2]{\left\{#1\right\}_{#2}}\) \(\newcommand{\gray}[1]{\color{gray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\lgray}[1]{\color{lightgray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\rank}{\operatorname{rank}}\) \(\newcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\col}{\text{Col}}\) \(\renewcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\nul}{\text{Nul}}\) \(\newcommand{\var}{\text{Var}}\) \(\newcommand{\corr}{\text{corr}}\) \(\newcommand{\len}[1]{\left|#1\right|}\) \(\newcommand{\bbar}{\overline{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bhat}{\widehat{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bperp}{\bvec^\perp}\) \(\newcommand{\xhat}{\widehat{\xvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\vhat}{\widehat{\vvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\uhat}{\widehat{\uvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\what}{\widehat{\wvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\Sighat}{\widehat{\Sigma}}\) \(\newcommand{\lt}{<}\) \(\newcommand{\gt}{>}\) \(\newcommand{\amp}{&}\) \(\definecolor{fillinmathshade}{gray}{0.9}\)Problems with a Hierarchy
While following a Quasi-Military style of organization did help overcome some of the early problems of law enforcement in terms of hiring and promotion based on who you know not how you perform this rather rigid structure can have some drawbacks.
Promotion
Having a rather rigid hierarchy configuration is different than how many businesses are structured. For instance, if you had a highly qualified officer that is succeeding and advancing in their skills at a higher rate than everyone else in some business settings they would be quickly promoted. In the hierarchy setting there is typically the SOP that you must spend a certain number of years in rank no matter how well you perform before you are considered for promotion. Once your number of years are served you are then eligible to take a promotion examination. Depending on your score on the examination and the number of openings in the next higher rank you may or may not be promoted until the next testing period.
Demotion
In the business world if you were not performing up to standard it is quite possible that you would be demoted in rank or have your pay cut or perhaps fired. With the hierarchy model once you have achieved a higher rank while you may face a pay freeze or be fired if appropriate, demotion is not one of the options. In the hierarchy once your period of “leave” is expired you will return to service at the same rank.
Career Officers
Because of the rigidness of the pyramid structure, individuals that wish to spend their entire lives in the career of law enforcement face some difficult decisions. If someone has spent some time in the field, has completed numerous trainings and has excelled in their work and feels they are ready for advancement, if they stay in the same agency that they are currently in it may be a number of years before they are “eligible” to test for promotion. What often happens is that the superior officers leave their current employment and get hired on at a different department that is willing to hire them in at a higher rank. This method of switching agencies means he will advance more quickly than those that are loyal to one agency and need to spend a number of years before advancing. This difficulty also means that many agencies lose some of their best officers because they are not able to reward them with an advancement even if it is deserved until they have spent the procedurally dictated number of years in the field.
Another way of examining the organization of law enforcement in the United States is to divide it into the levels of government which oversee and finance the relevant law enforcement agencies. Typically the levels are Metro or local level law enforcement such as a Police Department, County level law enforcement such as a Sheriff’s Department, state level law enforcement such as the state Highway Patrol, and federal law enforcement such as the FBI. While these will be the main divisions of law enforcement that we will examine, one should not forget that there are other law enforcement agencies as well such as tribal law enforcement and sometimes even campus level law enforcement.