Equality
Denied
The Status of Women in Policing:
1999
|
I |
n order to monitor the growth of women in law enforcement, the National Center for Women & Policing has completed its third annual study on the status of women in the largest law enforcement agencies in the country. This report examines the gains and gaps in the numbers of women in policing, and provides a picture of where women are in law enforcement today. The report examines the major barriers preventing women from increasing their numbers in law enforcement and the adverse effects of the continued under-representation of women in police departments.
Since its inception in early
1995, the National Center for Women &
Policing has been a leading force behind increasing the numbers of women in
law enforcement. Studies have
illustrated the positive impact of women in policing, including the reduction
of police brutality, the increased efficacy in police response to violence
against women, and the increased emphasis on conflict resolution over use of
force. These conclusions mandate that
we strive for gender balance in policing.
Yet, our research shows that
the increase of women in law enforcement continues at an alarmingly slow
rate. Women comprise only 14.3% of all
sworn law enforcement positions nationwide – a meager increase of one-half of
one percent from 1998 and only 5.3 percentage points higher than in 1990, when
women made up 9% of officers. The data
are clear: at the present rate of growth, women will not achieve equality in
law enforcement agencies for several generations.
KEY FINDINGS[1]
·
Women
comprise 14.3% of all sworn law enforcement positions among municipal, county,
and state law enforcement agencies in the United States with 100 or more sworn
officers. Women of color hold 6.8% of
these positions.
·
Over
the last nine years, the representation of women in sworn law enforcement ranks
has increased by 5.3% percent, from 9% in 1990 to 14.3% in 1999.
·
The
gains for women in policing are so slow that, at the current rate of growth, it
will take several generations for women to reach equal representation or gender
balance in law enforcement agencies.
·
Women
currently hold 5.6% of sworn Top Command law enforcement positions, 9.2% of
Supervisory positions, and 15.6% of Line Operation positions.[2] Women of color hold 1.1% of sworn Top
Command law enforcement positions, 2.8% of Supervisory positions, and 7.8% of
Line Operations positions.
·
More
than 65% of the agencies surveyed reported no women in Top Command positions
and 91% of the agencies reported no women of color in the highest ranks. This
is a clear indication that women continue to be largely excluded from the
essential policy making positions in policing.
·
State
agencies trail municipal and county agencies by a wide margin in hiring and
promoting women. Specifically, state
agencies report 6.2% sworn women law enforcement officers, which is
significantly lower than the percentages reported by municipal agencies (16.6%)
and county agencies (11.1%).
·
Women
continue to hold a majority (66.1%) of lower-paid civilian law enforcement
positions. Women of color hold 25.7% of
civilian positions.
·
Although
women continue to hold a majority of civilian law enforcement positions, they
are not equally represented in top management positions where they remain at
42%. Women of color hold a mere 6.4% of
the management positions in civilian law enforcement.
·
Law
enforcement agencies with corrections personnel report that women comprise
26.4% of all corrections positions.
Women of color hold 14% of all corrections positions.
·
Women
comprise 29.3% of Line Operations positions within corrections personnel, 16.2%
of Supervisory positions, and a mere 8.2% of Top Command positions. Women of color hold only 1.6% of the coveted
top command positions within corrections.
BARRIERS TO WOMEN IN POLICING
Research concludes that the single largest barrier
to increasing the numbers of women in policing is the attitudes and behavior of
their male colleagues. For example, national studies consistently find that
discrimination and sexual harassment are pervasive in police departments and
that supervisors and commanders not only tolerate such practices by others, but
also are frequently perpetrators themselves.[3] Hostile environments and systemic
discrimination keep women from joining police agencies in more significant
numbers and from being promoted up the ranks to policy-making positions, thus
perpetuating a style of policing that is outdated, ineffective, and enormously
costly to communities.
BIASED ENTRY TESTS
·
Entry
exams, with their over-emphasis on upper body strength, favor men and wash out
qualified women – despite studies showing that physical prowess is less related
to job performance than verbal and mediation skills. In fact, no research has shown that strength is related to an
individual’s ability to successfully manage a dangerous situation.[4]
While discriminatory height requirements were finally discarded in the early
1970’s, today’s tests that over-emphasize upper body strength continue to bar
highly qualified women from entering policing.
WIDESPREAD DISCRIMINATION ON THE JOB
·
Once
on the job, women are frequently intimidated, harassed, and maliciously
thwarted, especially as they move up the ranks.[5] In Los Angeles, male officers formed a
clandestine organization within the LAPD called “Men Against Women” whose
purpose is to wage an orchestrated campaign of harassment, intimidation and
criminal activity against women officers – just one example of the kind of
organized harassment women experience in law enforcement. A large number of women across the country
have been driven from their jobs in law enforcement due to unpunished,
unchecked, and unrelenting abuse.
RECRUITMENT POLICIES THAT FAVOR MEN
·
Law
enforcement agencies continue to heavily recruit ex-military personnel and at
military bases, security agencies, and male-oriented sporting events, which are
all disproportionately populated by men.
Recruitment departments have not adequately intensified their efforts to
attract qualified women candidates or to portray policing as a profession that
welcomes women.
OUTDATED MODEL OF POLICING
· Many law enforcement agencies continue to promote an outdated model of policing by rewarding tough, aggressive, even violent, behavior. This “paramilitary” style of policing results in poor community relations, increased citizen complaints, and more violent confrontations and deaths. Redefining law enforcement to a community-oriented model of policing would attract more women who are repelled by policing’s trademark aggressive and authoritarian image.
UNDER-REPRESENTATION
OF WOMEN HURTS LAW ENFORCEMENT
ESCALATING COST OF POLICE BRUTALITY
·
Research
indicates that women officers are not as likely as their male counterparts to
be involved in the use of excessive force.[6] This suggests that increasing the number of
women in police departments may reduce excessive force by police and improve
police effectiveness and service to communities. Thus, the continued
under-representation of women in policing is contributing to and exacerbating
law enforcement’s excessive force problems.
The actual and potential liability for cities and states is staggering,
with lawsuits due to excessive force by male law enforcement personnel costing
tens of millions of dollars of taxpayer money every year.
INEFFECTIVE RESPONSE TO VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN
·
The
under-representation of women in law enforcement also has significant
implications for women in the community who are victims of domestic
violence. Domestic violence is believed
to be the most common yet least reported crime in the United States. These crimes account for up to 40% of all
calls to police[7] and
one-third of all law enforcement’s time.[8] Given the extent of the problem, it is
important to note that female officers are demonstrably more effective than
their male counterparts in responding to crimes against women.[9] Even more critical, studies have found that
up to 40% of officers commit domestic abuse themselves.[10] As a result there is a 40% chance that
officers responding to a scene of a domestic violence incident may themselves
be an abuser. It is therefore
reasonable to speculate that the overall quality of police response to cases of
violence against women may improve greatly by increasing the numbers of women
in law enforcement.
DAMAGED POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS
·
Women
favor a community-oriented approach to policing which is rooted in strong
interpersonal and communication skills and which emphasizes conflict resolution
over use of force. With greater numbers
of women, this highly effective model of policing will increasingly improve the
public image of law enforcement agencies as well as have a positive impact on
police-community relations nationwide.
COSTLY SEXUAL HARASSMENT AND SEXUAL DISCRIMINATI0N
LAWSUITS
·
Law
enforcement agencies have tolerated workplace environments that are openly
hostile and discriminatory towards female employees, forcing women to bring
successful lawsuits against their agencies.
The ongoing serious under-representation of women in policing leads to
greater numbers of incidents of sexual harassment and discrimination. Increasing the number of women and treating
women equally on the job, will reduce the enormous costs resulting from
widespread lawsuits.
THE STATUS OF WOMEN IN POLICING: 1999 SURVEY FINDINGS
Over the last 28 years, women have increased their representation in sworn law enforcement positions to 14.3% in 1999, from a low of 2% in 1972.[11] This 12.3 % gain has been spread over the intervening years, averaging an annual rate of less than one-half of one percent per year. In 1978, women in the largest municipal agencies held 4.2% of the sworn law enforcement positions. Ten years later, in 1988, that number had barely doubled to 8.8%,[12] and it was not until 1993 that police agencies on average had reached a major benchmark, crossing into the double digits.
In 1999, the
rate of increase remained constant.
From 1998 to 1999, women increased their representation in policing from
13.8% to 14.3%, a mere gain of one-half of one percentage point. With very few
exceptions, women remain underrepresented at every level of sworn law
enforcement and are essentially absent from the decision-making ranks and
positions of authority. Data from 1990
to 1999 demonstrate only a slight 5.3 percentage point increase (See
Graph 1).
The Status of Women in Sworn Law Enforcement
Graph 1
Sources: NCWP Survey 1997, 1998,
and 1999; Bureau of Justice Statistics, “Law Enforcement Management and
Administrative Statistics,” 1990 and 1993.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Not surprisingly, women’s
gains are concentrated in the lowest tier of sworn law enforcement positions.
Women hold 15.6% of Line Operation positions, but their numbers rapidly
decrease in the higher ranks. For example,
women hold 9.2% of Supervisory posts and only 5.6% of Top Command positions (See
Graph 2).[13] Only
seven percent of the 126 responding law enforcement agencies reported more than
20% women in Top Command. By contrast,
fully 65% percent of the agencies surveyed reported having no women in Top
Command and approximately 91% reported having no women of color in Top Command.
Graph 2
Source: NCWP Survey, 1999
____________________________________________________________________________________
Comparisons between state, county, and municipal law enforcement agencies also reveal sharp differences for women in policing. While county and municipal agencies tally 16.6% and 11.1% women in sworn law enforcement positions, respectively, state agencies lag with an average of 6.2% (See Graph 3).
Graph 3
Source: NCWP Survey, 1999
______________________________________________________________________________________
The Status of Women in Civilian Law Enforcement
Although women hold only
14.3% of the sworn law enforcement positions in agencies surveyed, they
continue to hold the majority of lower-paid civilian jobs (See Graph 4).
Graph 4
Source:
NCWP Survey, 1999
________________________________________________________________________
Among civilian personnel, women comprise 42.2% of Management positions, 61% of Supervisory positions, and 67.4% of Support Staff (See Graph 5).[14] While women comprise a significant majority of civilian positions, they continue to be underrepresented in civilian Management positions.
Graph 5
Source:
NCWP Survey, 1999
____________________________________________________________________________
The Status of
Women in Correctional Law Enforcement
Comparisons between the percentage of women serving in corrections facilities and women serving as sworn officers in state, county, and municipal agencies indicate a vast difference.[15] The percentage of women in corrections positions is almost twice as high as the percentage of sworn women police personnel – 26.4% in corrections compared to 14.3% in sworn (See Graph 6). Unfortunately, corrections officers are traditionally paid less than sworn law enforcement officers in non-corrections positions, and often have less career advancement opportunity.
Graph 6
Source:
NCWP Survey, 1999.
Women’s gains in correctional facilities are also concentrated in the lowest tier. Women comprise 29.3% of Line Operations positions within corrections, 16.2% of Supervisory positions, and a mere 8.2% of Top Command positions (See Graph 7).
Graph 7
Source:
NCWP Survey, 1999
______________________________________________________________________________________
The Status of
Women of Color in Law Enforcement
In the majority of law enforcement agencies, women of color are also under-represented. While women hold 14.3% overall of sworn law enforcement positions, women of color hold 6.8% of these jobs. Moreover, women of color are virtually absent from the highest ranks, holding only 1.1% of the coveted Top Command positions in sworn law enforcement (See Graph 8). No agency reported more than 16% women of color in sworn law enforcement ranks.
Graph 8
Source:
NCWP Report, 1999
____________________________________________________________________________
While women of color have made greater gains as civilian personnel, holding 25.7% of civilian positions, they comprise only 6.4% of civilian Management positions and 18.2% of Supervisory positions. (See Graph 9).
Graph 9
Source:
NCWP Survey, 1999
______________________________________________________________________________
Although, women represent 26.4% of corrections personnel overall, women of color hold 14% of these positions. Moreover, women of color hold only 1.6% of the Top Command positions within corrections. (See Graph 10).
Graph 10
Source: NCWP Survey, 1999.
_____________________________________________________________________________
Overall, women have made small gains in law enforcement over the past 28 years and continue to increase in numbers at an alarmingly slow rate. Until law enforcement agencies enact policies and practices designed to recruit, retain, and promote women, gender balance in policing will remain a distant reality.
METHODOLOGY
This study was conducted from July 1999 to November
1999 and surveyed 180 law enforcement agencies with 100 or more sworn officers;
126 responded with information. To
avoid the reality and appearance of bias, all contact with participating agencies
was designed to be both persistent and consistent. In order to meet these two goals, the
following implementation plan was followed.
·
A
cover letter and survey questionnaire was mailed to the head of the law
enforcement agency (Chief or Sheriff) in July 1999.
·
Next,
a phone call was made to the office of the agency’s head to determine the
appropriate contact person to provide the desired information. Based on past experience, this is most
likely to be the director of human resources, although this certainly varies by
agency.
·
A
phone call was then made to the contact person. A copy of the survey was faxed immediately to the contact person
if he or she had not yet received it.
·
After
the contact person received the faxed survey, a follow-up call was made within
a few days to emphasize the importance of the study and their role in it, to
address any questions or concerns, and to generally facilitate their
participation.
·
Finally,
follow-up phone calls were made to each contact person, either until the
department provided information or it became clear that no amount of
persistence would yield cooperation.
Specifically, non-participating departments were called up to four
times. The number of phone calls made
was documented to assure consistency across the departments in our sample
(i.e., how many attempts were made to reach the contact person and how many
discussions took place).
·
If
errors or inconsistencies were found in any survey responses, the contact
person was telephoned until the issue was clarified or it became clear that no
amount of persistence would yield clarification. In the latter instance, the data in question was excluded from
further analysis.
The study includes 56 municipal agencies, 44 county departments, and 26 state agencies. The sizes of the agencies included in the survey range from a high of 12,604 sworn officers to a low of 32. The mean is 719.42 and the median is 246.5. For a complete ranking of the 126 police agencies in the present sample from the highest to the lowest percentage of sworn women law enforcement officers, see Table 1. Comparison data for the years 1990 and 1993 were obtained from the Bureau of Justice Statistics.[16] (Please refer to the Technical Appendix for a more complete discussion of the sampling and methodology used in the 1999 Status of Women in Policing Report.)
