VITAL public services have not been disrupted as a result of the Department of Public Safety’s new policy on overtime, DPS said yesterday.
DPS spokesman Pete C. Muna said police operations, including those involving emergency medical technicians, continue despite the drastic reduction in overtime.
“In every shift, there is one certified EMT that should be with the transporting unit,” he said.
DPS continues to have several certified EMTs, he added.
For every shift, moreover, there is at least eight to nine police officers on patrol missions, Muna said.
“Some people,” however, are making the overtime cut an “issue,” he said.
“They consider it a privilege that they are entitled to and it’s been taken away from them,” he said. “But overtime is required only when it is needed. If it is necessary, if it is urgent, if there is an emergency, yes, I will support that and by all means let’s pay them and let them work overtime,” he said.
The department’s new OT policy has saved the cash-strapped government $400,000, DPS said.
