MIDLAND, Mich. — A new study from the Mackinac Center for Public Policy recommends reforms at both the state and local level to improve disciplinary measures in police union contracts. These reforms would protect police officers who perform their duties honorably while ensuring that command officers can properly hold accountable those who fall short.

Incidents of excessive police force in the past few years have sparked a nationwide debate around policing procedures and techniques. Collective bargaining agreements have a significant impact on disciplinary procedures. The rules in these contracts are heavily influenced by police unions during bargaining negotiations and have a history of overly protecting bad actors.

After examining 25 recent collective bargaining agreements between local municipalities and police unions across Michigan, the study found multiple examples of language that makes it more difficult for police chiefs to hold officers accountable. This includes policies like erasing disciplinary records after a certain period, prohibiting disciplinary records from being considered in promotion and retention decisions and using binding arbitration in discipline.

Overly protective terms can create a challenging environment for officers who do their jobs well if bad actors cannot be held accountable. Many collective bargaining agreements currently restrict appropriate disciplinary measures from being worked through the chain of command.

There are ways to balance the competing interest of protecting officers who perform their duties admirably while allowing their superiors to hold other officers accountable. Many arbitrators currently can modify the discipline issued to an officer by overruling a police chief’s disciplinary decision. A better approach would allow arbitrators to decide whether the facts giving rise to discipline are accurate. If they are, the discipline cannot be modified. This ensures that those in command, rather than unelected and unaccountable third parties, decide what discipline is appropriate.

Lawmakers in Lansing can address many of the issues found in these contracts by amending the Public Employment Relations Act. At the local level, municipalities can negotiate the scope of these contract provisions to ensure that law enforcement officers receive due process, while still preserving municipal authority over the disciplinary measures that are taken.

“Police officers put their lives on the line every day in order to protect our communities,” said Steve Delie, director of labor policy at the Mackinac Center. “But, just like in every profession, there is no guarantee that every employee will act with integrity. It’s important that collective bargaining agreements protect officers from arbitrary decisions while also not standing in the way of appropriate disciplinary measures for those who need to be held accountable.”

Read the full study here.