Should merchants give police officers and firefighters special discounts?
Dr. Kardasz
Should merchants give police officers and firefighters special discounts?
Read the following column by Susan Clairmont of the Hamilton Spectator.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
There's a hidden menace in that free cup of coffee
By Susan Clairmont, The Hamilton Spectator
(Aug 29, 2006)
Usually when freebies and discounts are offered to people in uniform, it's done discreetly.
Like the time I was on patrol with a constable who went into a sandwich shop, ordered lunch, then slyly pressed his empty palm against the cashier's, literally going through the motions of paying for his meal without a cent changing hands. Or once when paramedics I was riding with swung by Tim Hortons for their expected free cup of coffee. Or the firefighters who told me about the deals they get on food for the station.
Over the years, I've spent a lot of time on the job with people in uniform. Most are scrupulously conscious of paying their way fair and square. Some, I suspect, were probably on their best behaviour because I was taking notes. But a few have been so oblivious to the ethics breached by accepting gifts that it never occurred to them to hide it. It's that last group that seem to be the target of an advertisement in this paper's sports section last Saturday. It was for Niagara Falls Golf Club's "stay and play" packages.
Three days of golf, cart rental, two nights accommodations and casino shuttle. Sounds fine. But read on in the ad and you get a better idea of who the club is catering to. "V.I.P. Bachelor Golf Parties our Specialty. 1 block South of Sundowner, Seduction and Penthouse Men's Clubs."
OK, so they're about-to-be-married golfers or horny golfers or both. But keep reading. "Special rates for firefighters, police and EMS." Really? If you flash your badge or wear your fire hat or bring your stethoscope with you to the golf course, you get a deal?
I called the course. They didn't want to talk about it much. A woman there did tell me the owner is a firefighter and that the discount -- which is valid Sunday to Thursday -- is designed for emergency and law enforcement workers who often have days off during the week. Apparently the same deal doesn't apply to steelworkers or nurses or librarians or anyone else who might work the weekend and have a few days off Sunday to Thursday.
What is really interesting, though, is that the firefighter who owns the club (he didn't return my call, by the way) ought to know that most police, fire and EMS services have policies forbidding members from accepting the very sort of deal he is offering. So either he didn't think this through and has wasted a lot of money in advertising dollars or he must believe those policies are ignored often enough that he can profit from those indiscretions.
Hamilton police have a policy that clearly and strictly forbids members from accepting or soliciting "any gift, benefit, money, discount, favour or other assistance of any nature or kind" being offered "because of the member's position as a member of the police service unless such is also offered or made available to all members of the public."
So is it OK for a Hamilton cop to take Niagara Falls Golf Club up on its discount? "No," says Deputy Chief Tom Marlor. The Hamilton Fire Department's policy is a little less specific. Each firefighter is "personally responsible" for ensuring they do not place themselves in a position of breach of trust. The department does not condone the acceptance of special offers or freebies. "That compromises our integrity," says Tim Boychuck, assistant deputy fire chief. "No deals. Everybody has a job to do in life. We are no different from anybody else."
Niagara police rely on the Police Services Act to guide its decisions about gifts and deals. Quite simply, they are not allowed. Badging your way to a golf course discount just isn't acceptable and can actually be punishable by a charge of misconduct.
You may think this is a lofty discussion to be having about a few rounds of golf. The money isn't huge. The cops and firefighters and paramedics would be off duty. Big deal? Well, it is a big deal. And it is often encapsulated in a single cup of coffee. It's just a fact. Cops, firefighters and paramedics are offered free coffee all the time. "The free coffee for the police officers on duty is not proper," says Inspector Joe Matthews of the Policing Standards Unit in Niagara.
No matter how well-intentioned the offer, the optics and sometimes the repercussions are messy. Will the coffee shop that gives out free java attract more cops and be a safer, busier spot than other businesses? If there is a problem at that shop, will police respond faster? If the owner of the shop gets into trouble, will the cops do him or her a favour? There are a lot of accusations that can fly when someone in a position of authority or power takes advantage of their status. Whether the compromising of integrity is real or imagined, the optics aren't good. Just buy the cup of coffee.
Susan Clairmont's commentary appears regularly in The Spectator. sclairmont@thespec.com 905-526-3539
Retrieved August 30, 2006 from http://www.hamiltonspectator.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=hamilton/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1156801812554&call_pageid=1020420665036&col=1014656511815