Police strike

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A Police strike occurs when law enforcement is effected by a labour dispute. They are extremely rare. Generally, they are illegal, but for obvious reasons this law is difficult to enforce. The few times throughout history when there has been a large scale strike among law enforcement, civil unrest has resulted.

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[edit] Police strikes

[edit] 1923 Victorian Police strike

Half the police force in Melbourne went on strike over the use of labour spies. Riots and looting followed. A request by the Premier to the Federal Government for troops was refused. 634 policemen were discharged, about a third of the force.

[edit] Baltimore police strike

The Baltimore Police Strike occurred in 1974.

[edit] Boston Police Strike

The Boston Police Strike occurred in 1919 after the Police Commissioner refused to allow the creation of a police union. The strike plunged Boston into civil chaos, despite 300 officers remaining on duty.

[edit] British police strikes in 1918 and 1919

In 1918 the strike was settled the first day. In 1919 only 15% participated in the strike.

[edit] Legality

Some Crime Acts make it illegal for anyone to interfere with police in the course of their duty. Thus anyone calling on police to stop work or support a fellow worker would be guilty of a criminal offence. Police officers do not have the employment rights enjoyed by other workers because of the nature of the job they do on behalf of the public.

In the UK Police officers are currently banned from taking strike action under the Police Act 1996. The police have been banned from striking since 1919, when the Police Act was first established. The Police Federation of England and Wales is to ballot rank-and-file officers on moves to overturn the law.[1]

During the Murray-Hill riot the National Assembly of Quebec passed an emergency law forcing the police back to work.

[edit] See also

  • 1919 Winnipeg General Strike- most of the force was replaced for refusing to sign a declaration promising not to belong to a union or participate in a sympathy strike, even though they remained on duty during the strike.
  • Police rank

[edit] References

  1. Days Of Violence: : The 1923 Police strike in Melbourne (1998) Gavin Brown and Robert Haldane ISBN 1-876462-01-9