ALANNAH KERR
Concerns are being raised about gender equality in Queensland police. The question is, is having the same amount of female and male police officers the right and safest thing to do?
In 2015, there were over 100,000 offenders in Queensland. Over 75% of these were male.
We spoke to an employee of QPS who asked not to be identified due to their role in the Queensland police industry who shared their opinion after witnessing the issues faced by female police officers.
“Look my opinion is nothing sexist, it is purely based on what I’ve seen and my worry for the fact that the industry is more so copying all other industries with gender equality just to make everyone happy, rather than actually thinking about whether or not gender equality is the safest decision for Queensland Police Force,” they said.
Robert Mulhern, a retired Queensland police officer of 35 years said, “I don’t think there is an issue with having equal amounts of female to male police officers. In current society I think that it’s something that agencies should work towards. There is certain operational capacity issues that you have to consider with any staffing whether that be male or female.”
“When I started in the police industry there were all these weight and height restrictions on becoming a police officer, but now that gender equality is put in place these restrictions have been removed. These days height and weight isn’t an issue as we have come up with many tools for those officers that may be of smaller build or that feel more vulnerable.”
Another person from Queensland Police who also asked not to be identified says, “I think the smarter move for this industry would be to focus on who is fit for the role rather than checking we have the same amount of females to males. Majority of the time males are physically stronger, which is what this kind of job type needs really. There are lots of females out there that are extremely strong and we would of course take them on board as a police officer, but anyone that isn’t physically able to handle an offender and needs to rely on tools I feel do not suit the job type.”
“If people find they’re not fit for the role then there’s no need to sulk about it. We’re all born with different talents and some of those talents or physical abilities you’re either born with or you’re not. Queensland police media control what every single officer says on camera so it’s not their own opinion anyway. I think if people had the chance to actually hear what police officers actually thought of gender equality in our police force then it would be very different.”
If you are considering a career in the QLD Police and for more information on this topic, head to Queensland Police Recruiting
