Pittsburgh Public Safety Director Mike Huss said he stood firm on Thursday against officers’ challenges of changes to the police pay structure for special assignment duties such as festivals and public events, reports the city’s Tribune-Review. “There’s some folks in that room that aren’t happy, but this is the way it’s going to be,” Huss said after a meeting in police headquarters.
He changed the policy in October to address how officers are paid and the number of hours they can work. When the policy was announced, the police union challenged the effective date of the change because the union did not receive proper notice. Among other changes, organizations that are billed for special police assignments must pay officers through the city, not directly, and the number of hours that new officers can work details were reduced.