Abstract
PurposeLaw enforcement agencies and police officers' efforts were crucial to oversee the public health measures and legal regulations introduced during the Covid-19 pandemic. The study had two objectives: to examine the strategies implemented by law enforcement agencies in Catalonia (Spain) to monitor the pandemic and to explore the adverse working conditions of police officers and their personal difficulties during the state of alarm.Design/methodology/approachA total of 96 experienced police officers completed a closed-ended, anonymous online survey. In addition, complementary information was collected about the management of law enforcement agencies through open interviews. A descriptive analysis was carried out and the association between variables was explored.FindingsIn general terms, law enforcement agencies managed the uncertainty of the situation, with a focus on official information and communication channels between officers. However, many difficulties were reported by the police officers, such us inconsistency between rules, lack of preventive material or changes in work schedules. Besides, the officers' main concern, beyond the emotional impact suffered during this period, was the possibility of being infected or infecting others.Practical implicationsThe congruence between the job requirements and resources, as well as the increase of communication channels during situations of high risk are important variables to assure good job development and personal satisfaction of police officers.Originality/valueTo the knowledge of the authors, at the time of writing this paper, this is the first study in Spain to explore the management of law enforcement agencies and police officers' personal experiences during the Covid-19.
Highlights
The outbreak of Covid-19 placed the world in the eye of the storm
Health professionals were offered special residences or hotel rooms by the government and other organizations to facilitate their job, access to hospitals and isolation. This is the first study in Spain about the experiences of law enforcement agencies and police during the Covid-19 first state of alarm
The results of this study reveal that it was feasible for workers to adapt to adverse working conditions due to Covid-19 and adaptation was more successful than expected
Summary
The outbreak of Covid-19 placed the world in the eye of the storm. The explosion in cases worldwide and the fast spread of the pandemic required extreme international control measures. The pandemic constituted an extreme macro-environment with major repercussions and challenges for all organizations (Prouska and Psychogios, 2019). During the outbreak and ongoing pandemic, misinformation about Covid-19 and. © Ana Martınez-Catena, Montse Subirana-Malaret and Falgars Subirana-Malaret. The full terms of this licence may be seen at http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode
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