Police seek pay for putting uniform on, off

Vest, shirt, badge - check.

Pants, boots, gun belt - check.

About 800 Phoenix police officers and up to 400 Mesa officers believe changing into and out of their uniforms each day is doing work, so they've sued in federal court to be paid for their time.

U.S. District Judge Neil V. Wake ruled in April that the Mesa Police Association shouldn't receive any money, according to court records, but the union has recently appealed the ruling to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

The lawsuit has cost Mesa more than $187,600 to fight so far, according to public records. And that bill could rise as the case continues.

The Phoenix Law Enforcement Association is still in the middle of its lawsuit, which was filed in May 2006.

Dale Norris, executive director of the Arizona Police Association and an attorney in both suits, said it takes officers an average of about 20 to 30 minutes each day to dress and undress.

"Police officers don't wear uniforms for their own benefit and this isn't like other clothing," Norris said. "I was a police officer for 22 years. Then I went to law school. ... When I put on my suit and tie and leave my house, I'm still Dale Norris, but when I was the police officer and I put on the uniform, you literally become someone else."

Norris added that wearing the uniform is "clearly for the employer's benefit" and that when people work for an employer, they should be paid for it.

But Mesa's other union, the Fraternal Order of Police, disagrees with Norris' stance and says that the lawsuits are wrong.

"We think this is gonna look pretty bad in the public's eye," said Bryan Soller, president of the union. "We think it looks like we want to get paid to put our pants on."

Soller said the uniform is no different from a regular person's work attire, with the exception of the badge and gun belt. He said Mesa police aren't even required to put on their bulletproof vests, but are only mandated to have them in their possession.

"They're gonna say that there's 37 things to put on to go to work, but (officers) don't take their gun belt apart," Soller said. "They only take the gun off."

Soller said he estimates the time it takes to dress and undress is closer to 10 to 20 minutes.

The argument involving police officers donning and doffing the uniform has been ongoing for at least the past 18 months, since the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2006 that employees at a meat packing plant should be compensated for putting on and taking off their safety equipment and uniforms.

Federal judges have been inconsistent in rulings involving agencies nationwide, Norris said. And it's likely that the Mesa Police Association's case will be the first to make it to the 9th Circuit.

"Some judges you have, completely sided with the officers' position and some judges you have, completely disagreed and ruled in favor of the employers," Norris said. "And you've seen some judges who have essentially split the baby."

Norris said he believes there won't be any consistency until the 9th Circuit decides on the issue.

Nationwide, some agencies are paying officers. The Honolulu Police Department pays officers, Norris said. And the California Highway Patrol and Portland Police Department are among others that offer some sort of compensation.

Soller said he agrees with the pay for certain federal agencies that must check equipment in and out each day, but not for police officers who can bring their equipment home and change.

Mesa officers can change at home or at a locker at work, depending on their preference. However, they must be dressed in their uniform to report to briefing.

"I'm trying to think of what the average citizen is gonna think of this," Soller said. "I just think this is gonna look greedy."

What a typical Mesa police officer wears:

Shirt with name tag and badge (can be cloth, sewn-on)

Bulletproof vest or outer carrier (outside vest)

Pants

Special belt under gun belt

Gun belt

Boots

Source: Mesa Fraternal Order of Police