City and MPD push back on police union's claims of inadequate staffing

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- The city of Milwaukee and the police department are pushing back against claims made by the police union over staffing issues earlier this week.

The union that represents officers, the Milwaukee Police Association, says just one officer was scheduled to patrol District 7 on Tuesday.

The union says low staffing and noncompetitive pay is to blame for one officer patrolling an entire district this week.

But the city and the department fired back against the union's claims, saying the situation is not as dire, or as unsafe, as the union is portraying.

MPA President Alexander Ayala told us, "You pull open records for a month straight in every district lineup, and this is going to be a daily occurrence. Just pick a district. Different districts will have one body."

The MPA made a bold claim on social media Thursday: "ONE Police squad to patrol the entirety of District 7."

The problem is MPD said "that information is inaccurate." And a city spokesperson called the claims "knowingly disingenuous."

But Ayala stands by them, "Yes, 100%."

MPD said there were two sick calls Tuesday, plus three officers were posted at a hospital that day and another was in training.

Ayala said, "It's a safety issue for my officer, my member. And also a safety issue for the citizens. You're going to call 911, you expect a police officer to show up at your door."

But the city and MPD said that was never in doubt.

According to MPD:

"On that day, Milwaukee Police District Seven had three hospital guards to staff, two sick calls, three limited duty officers inside, one officer on other excused union time and one at drone training. The lineup failed to reflect all squads taking assignments. District 7 also had a two-person captain’s car, and a one-person DV car patrolling and taking assignments. Additionally, we had a late shift officer stay over and called in a day shift officer to backfill to patrol and take assignments. There are also resources from other districts if needed that would be available to assist."

The back-and-forth again exposes the longstanding rift over a new labor contract.

The city and union are currently in arbitration because patrol officers have been without a new contract since January of 2022.

Recruiting new officers remains a challenge for departments across the country, and Ayala says MPD offering 2022 wages turns away a lot of candidates. "We're losing officers to the suburbs. That's a fact. They come to Milwaukee, they're here for a little bit, then they go to the suburbs."

The city maintains the starting salary for an MPD officer is competitive. But several suburbs advertise higher starting salaries.

The last several MPD recruiting classes have seen a steady decline in the number of new officers.

Act 12, passed in 2023, requires the city to have 1725 officers by 2034 or it could lose $37 million in funding. A city spokesperson said the city is meeting its yearly goals.