The Impact Of Public Safety Workplace Culture On Investigations
To the unsuspecting investigator, it might be surprising how public safety workplace culture differs from a standard workplace. For example, how often do most employees have 48-hour sleepovers with their co-workers? Enjoy meals and watching television together? Hold the life of another co-worker in their hands? And how often does whether an employee follows a supervisor’s directive impact the health and safety of public citizens in danger? These questions point to the heart of what makes public safety employees’ working environments both unique and challenging to navigate as an investigator.
Public safety employee relationships are multi-dimensional and unique. This blog explores two of the most impactful aspects of these workplaces: (1) the strict, paramilitary chain of command; and, (2) the strong cultural bonds that make first responders more akin to family than ordinary colleagues.
Understanding these employee relationships is key in helping investigators conduct effective investigations, which in turn can help decision-makers make changes or improvements to the workplace. Investigators often must distinguish between true misconduct and workplace conflicts rooted in management style, personality differences, or operational pressures. This may be an important distinction for the employer from a disciplinary perspective. However, public safety employers can also benefit from becoming aware of interpersonal conflicts amongst public safety employees. When public safety employees are not getting along or do not trust one another, it can negatively affect their ability to protect and serve.
The Chain of Command: A Paramilitary Structure.
Police and Fire Departments operate within a strict chain of command. Employees must follow directives from supervisors unless those directives are illegal or clearly violate internal policy. Understanding the chain of command dynamic helps investigators better interpret witness perspectives and often impacts witness credibility assessments.
This paramilitary structure affects investigations in several ways:
Employees lower in rank may feel intimidated about reporting misconduct, particularly if the person engaging in the misconduct holds a higher rank than they do.
Supervisors often have mandatory reporting responsibilities, which can affect their relationships with other supervisors and the employees they supervise.
Divisions and cliques can form based on rank, training backgrounds, or shared trauma from on-the-job experiences. These divisions can affect morale and the cohesiveness of teams within the organization.
Insubordination in the public safety employee context can lead to the compromised safety of employees and public citizens.
Cultural Bonds: The “Thin Blue Line” And The “Thin Red Line.”
Many of us have heard about the “thin blue line” or the “thin red line” in reference to Police and Fire personnel, respectively. These terms reflect the importance and reverence of law enforcement and firefighters in our communities. However, these terms also illustrate the tight cultural bond amongst first responders, including how they band together and consider each other part of a family and community.
These cultural bonds profoundly impact investigations in several ways:
Witnesses may be reluctant to share information they think might be hurtful to their work family, especially since they may face life and death situations together. This can lead to a lot of “I don’t recall” answers during investigative interviews, even when an interviewee likely has knowledge to share.
In the Police Department context, the “you lie, you die” motto is part of the culture. If police officers are determined to be dishonest, they can be placed on a “Brady List.” Being on this list significantly limits police officers’ ability to testify in court, which can effectively end their careers. This too can lead to “I don’t recall” answers during investigative interviews, out of fear or a general unwillingness to participate in the investigative process in a meaningful way.
Just like with any close-knit group, rumors and gossip are part of the public safety employee culture. This can lead to the opposite of “I don’t recall” answers—an information overload that investigators must carefully untangle. Gossip can also distort the timeline of events or taint witness perspectives. Investigators must navigate the rumor mill carefully by asking probing questions and trying to ascertain the origins and veracity of the rumors.
Practical Tips For Public Safety Workplace Investigators.
All of these public safety culture nuances require patience, cultural awareness, careful investigative planning, and thoughtful questioning from the investigator. Some practical tips for navigating these investigations include:
Understand the chain of command and seek to learn about any internal divisions/factions that exist within the organization.
Expect gossip, rumors, and innuendo as part of the evidence landscape and navigate it thoughtfully and with probing questions.
Expect frequent “I don’t recall” responses and consider why you are receiving those responses instead of just becoming discouraged.
Check your own assumptions—public safety is not a “normal” workplace. Keep in mind the cultural bonds amongst public safety employees and how those bonds affect how employees respond to being questioned about their work family.
