GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 2 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

air GARDA REPRESENTATIVE ASSOCIATION WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 Trauma and wellbeing among members of the Garda Representative Association An independent report commissioned by the Garda Representative Association July 2018 REPORT PRODUCED BY DR FINIAN FALLON, DEAN OF BUSINESS AND PSYCHOLOGY, CITY COLLEGES, DUBLIN, IRELAND. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS My thanks to the members of An Garda Síochána who participated in this study and who work with resilience and dedication in facing daily challenges from many directions. With appreciation to John O’Keeffe and Ray Dennison of the Garda Representative Association (GRA) for their flexibility and support in bringing this report to fruition. Philip Burke, CEO of City Colleges, made every accommodation to facilitate this work, thank you. Thanks also to Miriam Ameer-Mia for her assistance and advice. Gratitude is also due to the members of the Welfare Committee of the GRA for recommending the survey, especially to Conor Staunton of the Welfare Committee for his help and support during the survey, and to members of the GRA Central Executive Committee for agreeing to its inception. With thanks to Dr Bridget Juniper for permitting use of her Wellbeing Questionnaire and her advice. My gratitude is also due to Professor Anthony Staines, Chair of Health at DCU for his advice on this survey and his generosity in discussing the work with me on a number of occasions. Thank you, John O’Sullivan for your input also. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 2 Redacted, edited extracts from personal testimonies received: “I am lucky to have survived, but only for the support of my family and good colleagues on the ground, not because of any support provided by the organisation. In fact, the [ ] approach I encountered by the organisation for the [ ] years after I had summoned the courage to come forward, in itself seriously worsened my condition at great cost personally, to my family and An Garda Síochána.” "Isolated and disappointed are the words that I would use to describe how I feel as a result of my treatment by the organisation to date. It would appear that Gardaí are not entitled to be treated in the same manner as victims of crime like the public.” GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .......................................................................................................... 5 BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES ......................................................................................... 10 TRAUMA EXPOSURE, PTSD RATES AND POLICE OFFICERS ................................................ 10 WELLBEING AND POLICE OFFICERS .................................................................................. 15 SURVEY ETHICS AND METHOD ............................................................................................ 19 SURVEY RESULTS ................................................................................................................. 21 RESPONSES AND DEMOGRAPHICS ................................................................................... 21 TRAUMA SCREENING RESULTS ......................................................................................... 24 WELLBEING IMPACT RESULTS .......................................................................................... 29 FREE TEXT RESPONSE RESULTS......................................................................................... 31 DISCUSSION ........................................................................................................................ 35 RECOMMENDATIONS .......................................................................................................... 38 REFERENCES ........................................................................................................................ 39 APPENDIX A: FINAL SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE ..................................................................... 44 APPENDIX B: FINALISED DOMAINS AND ITEMS (JUNIPER, 2010).......................................... 55 APPENDIX C: FINAL IMPACT ANALYSIS................................................................................. 56 APPENDIX D: EDITED AND REDACTED FREE TEXT COMMENTS............................................. 59 GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 4 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This study was designed to provide a baseline quantitative and qualitative assessment of issues related to trauma and wellbeing for rank and file members of An Garda Síochána (AGS), and provide recommendations related to the survey findings. It was commissioned by the Garda Representative Association (GRA) following a submission I made on the need for this study and its importance to the GRA membership. In discussions with GRA during March and April of this year, it was agreed that a survey, completed in time for presentation at the 2018 Annual GRA Conference, would be carried out. The survey took place between April 24th and May 10th, 2018. Invitations to participate were issued by the GRA. Electronic measures were taken to prevent ballot stuffing. IP addresses and purposely duplicated questions were reviewed in considering the integrity of the data. No undue activity was observed. It is a credit to GRA representatives and members that this survey has been initiated and completed in such a short period of time. More than 2,200 GRA members responded to the survey, a response rate of 37.82% of the 5,828 rank and file members canvassed. In 1998, the GRA commissioned a comprehensive report, “Stress and Coping Among Members of The Garda Síochána at Garda Rank” by Professor Max Taylor et al. (1998). It is hoped that the 2018 study will build on this work and the wellbeing and trauma research that has been carried out in the intervening two decades, and contribute to the contemporary conversation in relation to an evidence-base for the activities of AGS. A goal for the 2018 study is that it will re-invigorate a research-based conversation that the GRA can have with, and on behalf of, its members. In reaching my conclusions for this report, the following aspects were considered;        The literature reviewed for this survey The trauma, wellbeing and thematic outcomes of the study Discussions with GRA officials Moving, detailed and personal testimonies related to these issues received by me Review of available documentation on internal Garda processes related to the care of traumatised Gardaí The cultural context of the force (PWC 2018) Increased contemporary institutional scrutiny of AGS While the trauma screening instrument used for this survey is not diagnostic, the results suggest that more than 16% of respondents reported symptoms consistent with a diagnosis of PTSD. Three or more of the five symptoms included in the screening instrument is the cutoff number of symptoms for a PTSD diagnosis in clinical settings. This means that more than one in six rank and file members may have significant symptoms of PTSD arising from GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 5 traumatic experiences. This finding is within the range reported for other first responder populations. In addition to the PTSD finding, there is also consideration of subthreshold PTSD (S-PTSD), where sub-diagnostic criteria are considered. Research suggests that those who experience S-PTSD may suffer similar levels of impairment and disability as those with a full PTSD diagnosis. If the number of survey respondents who have experienced trauma and who have selected two or more symptoms are included, this would equate to 27.31% of the overall sample (n=2,204) reporting what may be S-PTSD. This indicates that one in four members may be “walking wounded” in respect of the impact of trauma symptoms on their lives. Though these results should be treated tentatively, they are indicative of the potential level of PTSD symptoms among members of AGS, and are within the range of findings elsewhere. Of the 49 items presented to respondents in the wellbeing section of the survey, the top ten items for respondents arising from the Impact Analysis (see Appendix C for the full analysis of all items) of the survey were: Figure 1: Top Ten Impact Analysis Items Which of these have impacted members in the past 12 months Total Sample % Impacted* Impact ** Rank 2,204 95.01% 4.23 1 2,204 94.01% 4.16 2 2,204 94.65% 4.16 3 629 92.05% 4.02 4 2,204 91.79% 3.91 5 2,204 92.38% 3.88 6 2,204 91.92% 3.74 7 2,204 90.70% 3.70 8 2,204 91.24% 3.70 9 2,204 91.70% 3.69 10 Feeling frustrated by the amount of paperwork involved with your job? Not having the right equipment to enable you to do your job properly? Believing that senior officers and managers don't appreciate the challenges you face in your role? Witnessing nepotism in appointments to jobs/roles within the force? Having to work unsocial hours that impact on family and friends? Having insufficient training on the technical skills required for your work? Always feeling physically tired because of the hours you work? Believing that your overall remuneration package is inadequate? Feeling undervalued for your contribution to the wider force? Having too many work demands to be effective in your role? * Percentage (frequency) of members reporting item as important GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 ** The frequency multiplied by average importance for each question 6 Taken with the incidence of traumatic experiences among members, these findings indicate potential priorities for a wellbeing focus for the most impactful concerns of members. We know from the literature that organisational issues can cause greater stress on police than operational activities. Considered in conjunction with the significant changes being experienced by the force, these findings suggest an organisation that is in an agitated state of flux. The themes emerging from a thematic analysis of the free text element of the survey support the findings of the Impact Analysis outcomes. Comments made in these responses raise concerns about the level of support provided for traumatised members. The sentiment of the comments made by respondents in the free text part of the survey are mostly negative and contain some comments which should be of concern to any organisation (See Thematic Analysis and Appendix D). Though it is within the range of reported rates of PTSD among police populations, the apparent level of PTSD symptoms reported by this survey has significant implications for occupational health, productivity, the physical and mental health of members through increased risk of job-related issues, substance misuse and other life and health outcomes. Given the prevalence and importance of issues recorded in the wellbeing questionnaire, the trauma outcomes indicated by this survey, the tone and content of the free text comments made by respondents, and the recent reports of a high number of completed suicides among Gardaí, I would be concerned for the wellbeing and safety of members, especially those with difficulties related to trauma, in the absence of prompt changes in processes, procedures and the execution of these. I offer my deepest sympathies to those affected by such devastating loss. Given the above findings and context, the following are recommendations that I believe AGS should incorporate into its ongoing reform and modernisation efforts. These include: 1. Prompt review of and resource investment in PTSD and trauma treatment pathways, to address current, significant shortcomings and to facilitate the potentially long-term treatment necessary for members who have significant or chronic symptoms of trauma and PTSD, and who are experiencing distress and impairment. Timely, measured and effective resolution of occupational health issues related to these issues should be a core element of interventions. 2. A research study that engages AGS members should be undertaken to establish optimum and appropriate educational, briefing, intervention pathways and treatment protocols for members who have experienced work-related trauma. These elements should be developed within the unique organisational context of AGS and should include consideration of mandatory interventions and compulsory injury leave for certain types of work-related incidents. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 7 3. Efforts to normalise the actuality of stress and trauma and managing the impact of these in this unique working environment should be prioritised. 4. AGS should review and publish annual figures including treatment and occupational timescales and outcome measures for those receiving treatment for relevant workrelated injuries. 5. The electronic gathering of operational data and automation of paper-based data capture should be pursued systematically and vigorously where possible. 6. Renewed and continual effort should be taken to resolve issues with resourcing, particularly as these may relate to the impact of unsocial hours and fatigue reported in this survey. 7. Equipment and operational uniforms should be modernised, as reported in the top ten Impact Analysis outcomes and in the free text response results. 8. To address the impact of nepotism, promotion processes should be open and transparent and subject to formal, independent oversight. Related to this recommendation, is a need to further understand and address the prevalence of nepotism reported by GRA members. 9. The Continuing Professional Development (CPD) and training needs of each AGS member should be audited and timebound plans made for bringing member’s knowledge and training up to date. This plan should be communicated to each member. Further statistical analysis of the data from this survey will be undertaken to produce additional reports intended for publication in academic journals. The 1998 study by Taylor et al. concluded the following (p.7): 1. There needs to be an acknowledgment by both the Garda Síochána and the public that routine policing in Ireland may be a stressful occupation; 2. Existing welfare provision does not appear to be meeting the needs of some members of the Garda Síochána; 3. The current climate of the organization seems to foster coping responses which does not encourage disclosure or seeking help. In relation to the first point of the above study, the persistently high regard that the public has for AGS, reported in the AGS Public Attitudes Survey, persists (AGS/Amárach Research 2017). From the findings of this 2018 survey, given the prevailing context for this report, and based on discussions and testimonies received from members of the force, I believe that the second and third conclusions by Taylor et al. hold true today, twenty years after the report. In addition, members of the GRA who have participated in this study demonstrate rates of PTSD comparable with other police forces, at the higher end of ranges reported. The symptoms of PTSD reported are being lived out in the context of a relatively stressful organisational GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 8 environment which does not appear adequately and consistently supportive in response to traumatic work-related experiences. Based on the findings of the survey, and given the prevailing institutional context of the organisation, for rank and file members it appears that An Garda Síochána is a cauldron for adversity in relation to trauma and wellbeing. This adversity appears to be incremental to the normal day to day stresses that members encounter. Dr Finian Fallon CPsychol MIACP Dean of Business and Psychology, City Colleges, Dublin July 2018 ‘Based on the findings of the survey, and given the prevailing institutional context of the organisation, for rank and file members it appears that An Garda Síochána is a cauldron for adversity in relation to trauma and wellbeing.’ GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 9 BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Since its inception in 1922, An Garda Síochána (AGS) has experienced a series of upheavals in its governance and operations (Brady 1974; McNiffe 1997). Following the cessation of the Troubles, in recent years AGS is again undergoing historically significant changes. The organisation is also under intense public scrutiny. This is taking place in the context of significant changes in the oversight and management of the institution. Press reports have suggested that the number of completed suicides among members are at a high level. We feel deep regret at this devastating loss of lives. These factors suggest an organisation that is in an agitated state of flux. The contemporary operational context for AGS may be placing the wellbeing of its members at risk, incremental to the normal day to day dangers encountered in the work of a Garda. The review of research below provides the background for this study. Arising from the contextual factors for this report, the trauma and wellbeing literature reviewed and from discussions with GRA officials, it was agreed that the survey would be carried with the following objectives: 1. Establish the possible incidence of trauma symptoms and possible rates of PTSD among respondents. 2. Provide a ranked Impact Analysis of issues reported by respondents, showing the prevalence and importance of wellbeing factors identified (Juniper et al. 2010). 3. Make recommendations for changes that might support improvements in GRA member’s working lives related to trauma, PTSD and wellbeing findings of the survey. Given the purpose and scope of this survey, the following review of relevant research will focus on trauma, PTSD and wellbeing. In relation to terminology, the term “officers” is used below in a general sense to refer to police officers of various ranks. TRAUMA EXPOSURE, PTSD RATES AND POLICE OFFICERS In this section, the diagnostic criteria for PTSD will be discussed. Rates of exposure to trauma will also be reviewed. The prevalence rates of PTSD and, related to this, partial or subthreshold PTSD (S-PTSD) will be considered. Work-related trauma will also be explored and a summary of the section provided. One element of the work of police officers that is receiving increased research attention, especially since the events of 9/11, is the experience and treatment of trauma-related distress and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) among police officers and first responders. Javidi and Yadollahie (2011) discussed PTSD, saying: PTSD may develop if a person encounters an unexpected extreme traumatic stressor. Important traumatic events which usually cause PTSD include war, violent personal assault (e.g., sexual assault, and physical attack), being taken GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 10 hostage or kidnapped, confinement as a prisoner of war, torture, terrorist attack, or severe car accidents… Anyone who has experienced a lifethreatening condition can feel scared, confused, or angry. After a traumatic event, many people may develop some acute symptoms like severe anxiety, dissociative symptoms, dissociative amnesia, poor concentration, sleep disturbance, and derealization. However, the symptoms may not only resolve but also get worse in some of the victims, and the condition progresses to PTSD. It is still not clear why some people develop PTSD while others do not. In 1980, PTSD was first included as a diagnosable disorder in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, the diagnostic handbook of the American Psychiatric Association (APA 1980). The most recent version of the American Psychiatric Association Diagnostic and Statistical Manual 5th Edition (DSM 5) removed PTSD from inclusion in Anxiety disorders, placing PTSD in a separate chapter (APA 2013). Summarised DSM 5 criteria for a diagnosis of PTSD are (US Department of Veteran Affairs 2018): Criterion A (one required): The person was exposed to: death, threatened death, actual or threatened serious injury, or actual or threatened sexual violence, in the following way(s):     Direct exposure Witnessing the trauma Learning that a relative or close friend was exposed to a trauma Indirect exposure to aversive details of the trauma, usually in the course of professional duties (e.g., first responders, medics) Criterion B (one required): The traumatic event is persistently re-experienced, in the following way(s):      Unwanted upsetting memories Nightmares Flashbacks Emotional distress after exposure to traumatic reminders Physical reactivity after exposure to traumatic reminders Criterion C (one required): Avoidance of trauma-related stimuli after the trauma, in the following way(s):   Trauma-related thoughts or feelings Trauma-related reminders Criterion D (two required): Negative thoughts or feelings that began or worsened after the trauma, in the following way(s): GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 11        Inability to recall key features of the trauma Overly negative thoughts and assumptions about oneself or the world Exaggerated blame of self or others for causing the trauma Negative affect Decreased interest in activities Feeling isolated Difficulty experiencing positive affect Criterion E (two required): Trauma-related arousal and reactivity that began or worsened after the trauma, in the following way(s):       Irritability or aggression Risky or destructive behaviour Hypervigilance Heightened startle reaction Difficulty concentrating Difficulty sleeping Criterion F (required): Symptoms last for more than 1 month. Criterion G (required): Symptoms create distress or functional impairment (e.g., social, occupational). Criterion H (required): Symptoms are not due to medication, substance use, or other illness. EXPOSURE TO TRAUMATIC EVENTS In their 2015 epidemiological review of PTSD literature focusing on World Mental Health surveys, Atwoli et al. found that the rates of PTSD were consistent across different populations, reporting that there were methodological issues identified in measuring and reporting PTSD rates. They referred to a 2014 study by Ferry et al. which found a lifetime prevalence of traumatic events in Northern Ireland of 60.6%. Atwoli et al. found a lifetime experience of a traumatic event in the range of 54-64%. In their 2016 study, Benjet et al. found that over 70% of respondents in 24 countries from a total sample of nearly seventy thousand adults, reported lifetime exposure to traumatic events. In a study of trauma events experienced by police officers, and the relationship of these incidents with PTSD (n=359), Hartley et al. (2016) used the PTSD Checklist-Civilian Version (PCL-C, Weathers et al. 1993) to establish the levels of reported PTSD. They reported that 60.1% of male and 46.4% of female officers experienced five or more trauma events in the past year. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 12 PTSD PREVALENCE RATES In the USA, PTSD rates in the general population were reported at 8.3%, 4.7%, and 3.8% for lifetime, past-12-month, and past 6-month prevalence respectively (Kilpatrick et al. 2013). In their 2015 study of PTSD lifetime prevalence, Atwoli et al reported a range between 1.3% and 19.5%, across different methodological approaches and general populations. The 12-month population prevalence rate of PTSD (DSM-IV diagnosis) was reported by Karam et al. (2014) at 3.8% for Northern Ireland, the highest of the 20 middle and high-income countries included (n=51,295, all over 18 years of age, Republic of Ireland figures were not included). The average 12-month prevalence rate of PTSD in high-income countries was reported by Karam et al. at 1.1%. For police, fire, and emergency service workers (who might be described as first responders) rates of PTSD ranged from 6%–32% (Javidi & Yadollahie 2011). In their pooled analysis, based on a combined sample of 20,424, Berger et al. (2010) calculated a current prevalence rate for PTSD at 10% among rescue workers. From within this sample, they estimated the PTSD prevalence rate among police officers who have been exposed to a major disaster at 4.7% (n=4,953). In general populations, PTSD prevalence rates for females are significantly higher than males. Females in the general population are two to three times more likely than males to have PTSD, with prevalence rates of between 10% and 12% among women, and between 5% and 6% among men reported by Olff (2017). However, in studies of police officers, it has been found that rates of PTSD are similar for male and female officers (Lilly et al. 2009). In their review of the relevant literature, Lilly et al. found that factors such as the type of training received by officers may be more contributory to these outcomes than gender differences arising from societal enculturation. Hartley et al. (2016) also found a similar prevalence rate of PTSD among male and female officers: 15% for males and 18% for females, using a cut-off score of 33 from the PCL-C instrument. Hartley et al. suggested that self-selecting females who seek out police work may be more resilient for police work than females in the general population. Kilpatrick et al. (2013) argued that emotionality and dissociation related to trauma may be more predictive of PTSD occurrence among police than other factors, possibility arising from the nature of police training, which they said tends to discourage emotionality. Given the higher PTSD rates among females in the general population and the, perhaps, more resilient characteristics of female police officers, limiting emotionality could be both a protective and predictive strategy effecting trauma impact. Perhaps a temporary, consciousholding or limiting of emotionality might be an appropriate psychological strategy, until safety and some psychological distance from the trauma is attained and mediated through available supports. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 13 PARTIAL OR SUB-THRESHOLD PTSD Related to PTSD, partial or subthreshold-PTSD (S-PTSD) is receiving increased research focus. S-PTSD addresses the possibility that individuals may not meet the full criteria for a PTSD diagnosis, but may experience significant distress and impairment, perhaps at the same level as those with a full PTSD diagnosis (Zlotnick 2002). Using the PCL instrument to establish “full” and “partial” PTSD among a small sample of 157 Brazilian elite policemen, Maia et al. (2007) reported similar PTSD prevalence rates between Dutch and North American police. At 8.9% for full and 16% for partial PTSD, they reported that police had significantly higher incidence of divorce, health issues, medical visits and suicidal ideation. Kilpatrick et al. (2013) reported that S-PTSD is difficult to diagnose and is not clearly defined. Marshall et al. (2001) suggested that as the number of PTSD symptoms reported by a S-PTSD sample increased, there were higher levels of disability and suicidal ideation found. They also discussed the categorical approach used in diagnosing PTSD, arguing that is has led to a lack of understanding of the impact of subthreshold symptoms. They supported a dimensional approach to PTSD which would measure severity, rather than a categorical, yes/no, diagnosis. The lifetime prevalence of S-PTSD has been reported in a range between 3.6% to 25.6% by Mota et al (2016). OCCUPATIONAL INJURY AND TRAUMA In the context of first responder experiences of trauma and PTSD, the issue of work-related injuries and compensation arises. Among emergency medical services (EMS) personnel, Maguire et al. (2005) reported a higher level of occupational injuries among EMS staff than other populations. Rutkow et al (2011) referred to the recognised impact of work-related harm on first responder performance and health. They referred to the ethical and increasingly litigated obligation that organisations have to employees. They recommended mental health screening for first responders before, during and after emergencies and offered the example of the US military screening programme which assesses soldiers before, during and after deployment. They discussed the ethical implications of voluntary and compulsory screening, while they also acknowledged the stigma associated with mental health challenges. In researching the measurement of work-related psychological injury among Australian police, Windwood et al. (2009) observed that the repeated exposure to traumatic situations may cause PTSD among police. They wrote: Expensively trained and experienced employees are increasingly recognized as the most valuable (human) capital that an organization possesses, and their premature loss because of psychological injury represents an economic as well as a human tragedy. Certain occupations—particularly first responder organizations such as police—are particularly vulnerable to such effects by virtue of their inevitable GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 14 exposure to threatening and potentially traumatic events, which may vary significantly in severity and intensity. In considering the organisational response to work-related injury and trauma, Wise and Beck (2015) reviewed workers compensation for work-related PTSD in the USA. Their review suggested that in the US example, work related injuries included in law could be categorised as follows: 1. “Physical-Physical”: a physical cause resulting in a physical injury. 2. “Physical-Mental”: a physical cause resulting in a mental injury. 3. “Mental-Physical”: a mental injury such as attending a suicide resulting in physical injury such as chronic headaches. 4. “Mental-Mental”: a mental injury such as witnessing a murder scene resulting in a mental injury such as PTSD. Wise and Beck observed that mental and physical work injuries were not treated equally in law and that legislation needed to incorporate evidence related to the scientifically proven impact of trauma. In exploring the costs of untreated PTSD, they said that untreated PTSD adversely affects many areas of life including work and home life. They reported that psychiatric issues such as PTSD increase health costs, job injuries, absenteeism, and long-term disability. They argued that where an employee loses their position, arising from work-related mental injuries, the cost burden is often transferred to state welfare and health provision. Job losses arising from PTSD result in significant replacement costs for employers, up to 200% of the lost salary (SAMHSA 2008) and additional social welfare costs for the state. WELLBEING AND POLICE OFFICERS Though the definition of wellbeing varies, Dodge et al. (2012) concluded: Stable wellbeing is when individuals have the psychological, social and physical resources they need to meet a particular psychological, social and/or physical challenge. When individuals have more challenges than resources, the see-saw dips, along with their wellbeing, and vice-versa. We can see from this model how wellbeing is a continually in a state of change and how different elements or challenges can contribute to wellbeing becoming out of balance. This “see-saw” model of wellbeing, offered by Dodge et al., is illustrated below. Related to wellbeing, resilience incorporates aspects of adaptation, recovery and coping resources and refers to the ability of the individual to bounce back from systemic stresses (Angeler et al. 2018). It is also a dynamic concept and resilience may increase or decrease in the context of systemic conditions. Though its meaning may overlap and interact with wellbeing (Fava & Tomba 2009), resilience has been added to the following illustration as a fulcrum for wellbeing. While their definitions are not mutually exclusive, resilience may be characterised GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 15 as the infrastructure for coping with stress while wellbeing may be described as the outcome or performance in responding to stress. Figure 2: Wellbeing with Resilience as Fulcrum ORGANISATIONAL FACTORS AND WELLBEING As for any institution, the complexities of wellbeing and resilience are experienced in the context of organisational activities. Related to the organisational context and police wellbeing, Shane (2010) completed a study of two US urban police department (n=461). His findings suggested that organisational pressures were a more significant source of stress than work pressures. In discussing this research, Shane said that it (p. 815): … Suggests that police organizations continue to be a source of stress for officers greater than police operations. Only with major restructuring efforts will the effects of organizational stress subside. Although stress reduction and employee assistance programs are necessary, they may miss the mark because their focus is usually on police operations and they offer few if any suggestions about how to cope with the relentless and inescapable pressure generated by the organization. The organisational context also relates to how procedural outcomes, in respect of daily management and procedural oversight, impact police men and women. In discussing the emerging understanding of police wellbeing and the context of fairness in work-related contexts, Rani et al. (2015) argued that (p.183): Work is central to an individual’s life and perceived fairness in terms of distribution, procedure and interaction dramatically lead to employees’ psychological wellbeing (life satisfaction) which elicits contentment, fulfilment and to make an employee more competent to face the existential challenges of life. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 16 In 2016 Armstrong et al. studied a sample of firefighters (n=250). They reported that connectedness in an organisational context was a predictor of post traumatic growth and recommended psychosocial interventions in this area. This suggests the importance of the organisational support environment for recovery from trauma. This research indicates the significance of organisational issues in relation to stress and wellbeing among officers. Kop et al., in a 1999 study of 358 Dutch police officers, supported this perspective, also reporting that burnout was associated with a low level of reciprocity between officers and citizens, colleagues and the policing organisation. In their 2017 review of police stressors and related mental and physical health outcomes including familial impact, Violanti et al. described “job context” and “job content” to differentiate between the organisational and operational aspects of police work. They found that police men were 15 times more likely to complete suicide than female police. For police overall, the suicide rates reviewed by Violanti et al. were significantly higher than expected. The context and content aspects of police work were reported as having impact on physiological and psychological outcomes. IMPACT ANALYSIS AND WELLBEING DOMAINS In considering the measurement and impact of wellbeing issues in organisational settings, Juniper et al. (2010) observed the connection between wellbeing and work performance. They critiqued aspects of previous studies and developed a new instrument to address these issues. The issues they identified were; a lack of recognition that possibly adverse events do not stress all officers; overly small sample sizes; a need to recognise the wellbeing experiences of both civilian staff and officers; and an excessive focus on occupational stress rather than wellbeing. Their research recommended the use of Impact Analysis to measure both the impact of an aspect wellbeing on the individual and its prevalence in a sample. Their study identified nine dimensions of police wellbeing. Questions were developed and selected in these domains, for use in the Police Case Study completed. These domains and questions can be seen in Appendix B. CUMULATIVE STRESSORS AND SUICIDALITY Virtanen (2018) suggested that research has demonstrated an association between job stresses and suicidality (ideation and behaviours). In their review of 22 studies related to psychosocial job stressors and suicidality, Milner et al. (2018) found that factors including poor support from colleagues and supervisors and lack of job control were associated with suicidal ideation and suicide. Though focused on a general rather and a police population, in their 2016 archival study of 586 survey participants, Briere and Agee concluded that multiple interpersonal traumas may contribute to the development of PTSD. These studies may provide us with work-content and work-context perspectives on the risks of persistent stressors for suicidality outcomes. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 17 Adler et al. (2005), in a combined sample of 3,339 male and females returning from peacekeeping deployments, showed that those who engaged in longer deployments demonstrated higher levels of distress. They confirmed that males and females had different distress pathways, as reported by McCarty et al. (2009). McCarty et al. recommended differentiated approaches to addressing burnout and stress issues among male and female police. Though it is not yet explicit in police-focused research, studies suggest that it may be that combinations of ongoing, significant work-context and work-content stressors can result in an adversely cumulative outcome. It may be that a cumulative effect of persistent job stressors might contribute to a higher risk of suicidality among police officers. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 18 SURVEY ETHICS AND METHOD ETHICAL APPROVAL This research was carried out in adherence with the Irish Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (IACP) Code of Ethics and Practice for Counsellors/Psychotherapists, the British Psychological Society (BPS) Code of Ethics and Conduct (2009) and the BPS Guidelines for Online-Mediated Research (2017). Approval for this study was received from the City Colleges Ethics Board. Appendix A includes the study questionnaire containing the information sheet and support information for participants. SURVEY METHOD The survey was conducted in cooperation with officials of the Garda Representative Association (GRA), the Irish representative body for rank and file members of An Garda Síochána. In discussions with GRA during March and April of 2018, it was agreed that a wellbeing and trauma survey, completed in time for presentation at the May 2018 Annual GRA Conference, would be carried out. Discussions and meetings took place with relevant GRA officials and the GRA Welfare Committee. A focus group review of the study was undertaken with the GRA Welfare Committee. For confidentiality reasons, the GRA Welfare Committee requested that job roles be described in a summarised format (uniform, plain clothes, clerical and other) and that length of service information would not be recorded. The final report on the Survey was written independently of content or editorial input from GRA, except for proprietary and confidential considerations identified by GRA. These discussions and a review of literature provided a research context for this study. Arising from the contextual factors for this report, the trauma and wellbeing literature reviewed and from discussions with GRA officials, it was agreed that the survey would be carried with the following objectives: 1. Establish the possible incidence of trauma symptoms and possible rates of PTSD among respondents. 2. Provide a ranked Impact Analysis of issues reported by respondents, showing the prevalence and importance of wellbeing factors identified. 3. Make recommendations for changes that might support improvements in GRA member’s working lives related to trauma, PTSD and wellbeing findings of the survey. The survey took place between April 24th and May 10th, 2018. 5,828 invitations to participate were issued by the GRA directly to members via electronic means. Measures were taken to prevent ballot stuffing. IP addresses and purposely duplicated questions were reviewed in considering the integrity of the data. No undue activity was observed. More than 2,200 GRA GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 19 members from the sample frame responded to the survey, a 37.82% response rate from the convenience sample of 5,828 rank and file members canvassed. The estimated time for completion of the full survey was seven minutes. The online survey was delivered to respondents in two parts (see Appendix A) using the Qualtrics software package. The first part, a wellbeing study, was based on the survey instrument created by Dr Bridget Juniper for her 2010 study, “Evaluation of a novel approach to measuring well-being in the workplace” which included an analysis of 822 police survey responses from a county police force outside the London Metropolitan area. The final questionnaire developed by Juniper was used as a basis for the survey (see Appendix B for Junipers’ items). Related to the wellbeing section of the survey, three items were added to the Juniper (2010) items. One of these related to bullying and was added before the beginning of the survey following review of the literature and a focus group meeting. The other two items were added during the survey, after an initial review of the emerging themes recorded in the free text responses. These additional two items related to nepotism (n=629) and support in the aftermath of work-related incidents (n=627). Both items were included in the impact analysis and ranking. One of them (the nepotism item) ranked in the top ten impact items, below. The first part of the study, in line with the Juniper approach, included a free text question allowing inputs, limited to 500 characters for this study. The free text responses (n=822) were analysed for themes emerging from the comments made. The free text responses were redacted and edited to remove profanities and confidential information, and information that could identify an individual or location. For referencing purposes, they were numbered in a sequential number sequence as they were recorded in the extracted dataset. The second part of the survey consisted of a primary care screening questionnaire known as PC-PTSD-5 (Prins et al. 2016). This instrument incorporates the most recent diagnostic criteria for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) contained in the DSM 5 (APA 2013). This questionnaire is included in Appendix A below. It was described as one of the “gold standard” instruments for psycho trauma research (Olff 2015). Respondents were asked to agree to participation in this part of the survey, and if they had ever experienced traumatic events like those included in the questionnaire. For those who wished to participate, and who experienced trauma, a list of 5 symptoms of PTSD were included. Participants were asked to select those symptoms which they had experienced in the past month. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 20 SURVEY RESULTS In this section survey responses and results will be discussed and related to the literature and other survey findings were relevant. The trauma screening results, wellbeing impact analysis and free text data will be included in this results section. RESPONSES AND DEMOGRAPHICS A total of 5,828 survey email invitations were issued by GRA officials. 2,204 completed survey responses were received. The response rates represent a percentage response rate of 37.82%, and is comparable with the Juniper et al. (2010) response rate. The highest response rate of 47% was reported in the Eastern Region and appears to reflect the potential for electronic surveys of this kind to achieve high response rates. The response rates by region were: Figure 3: Invitations and Responses by Region Region Dublin Metropolitan Region Northern Region Western Region Eastern Region Southern Region South Eastern Region % of Total 28.90% 13.70% 16.74% 15.15% 16.88% 8.62% Total Emails Issued % Response Responses Rate 1,747 872 853 710 881 765 637 302 369 334 372 190 36.46% 34.63% 43.26% 47.04% 42.22% 24.84% 5,828 2,204 37.82% The 2,204 survey responses received equate to approximately one fifth of the total rank and file Gardaí employed, based on available figures for An Garda Síochána (personal correspondence, GRA official). While data for non-completed responses were not retained, the number of incomplete but commenced surveys was 20% of the overall total completed. When this non-completion rate emerged during the survey, the order of the trauma screening and wellbeing sections of the questionnaire were reversed, with the wellbeing section placed ahead of the trauma screening section. This change did not result in a significant reduction in non-completions over the remainder of the survey. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 21 Responses by gender are shown here: Figure 4: Responses by Region and Gender Region Dublin Metropolitan Region Northern Region Western Region Eastern Region Southern Region South Eastern Region Total Male % Female % Total Total % 454 211 234 216 251 122 71.27% 69.87% 63.41% 64.67% 67.47% 64.21% 183 91 135 118 121 68 28.73% 30.13% 36.59% 35.33% 32.53% 35.79% 637 302 369 334 372 190 28.90% 13.70% 16.74% 15.15% 16.88% 8.62% 1,488 67.51% 716 32.49% 2,204 100.00% The above table shows that of the overall survey sample of 2,204, 68% were male and 32% were female. The age range of survey participants are represented in the following diagram: Figure 5: Participant by Age Range GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 22 The breakdown of job roles by gender (n=2,204) were: Figure 6: Job Role by Gender Job Role % Male % Female Total Operational (Uniform) 70.2% 1096 29.8% 466 1562 Operational (Plain Clothes) 73.0% 336 27.0% 124 460 Clerical 29.3% 51 70.7% 123 174 Other 62.5% 5 37.5% 3 8 In relation to the percentage breakdown by gender, these results are presented in graphical form: Figure 7: Job Role by Gender (%) The trauma screening results will now be discussed. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 23 TRAUMA SCREENING RESULTS Figure 8: Trauma Screening by Gender (n=2,204) The above table shows that the reported lifetime prevalence of trauma reported by males is higher than reported by female respondents, which is consistent with the literature. In relation to trauma exposure, 82.44% of the overall survey sample reported a lifetime experience of the traumas listed in the survey questionnaire. While trauma research is very heterogenous, this reported rate is significantly above the range reported by Atwoli et al. (2015) for the general population of 54-64%, but within the range of 28-90% reviewed by Benjet et al. (2016) for exposure to one or more lifetime traumatic events in developed countries. In their analysis, Benjet et al. calculated a lifetime trauma exposure rate of 70%, with a definition of traumatic events that includes a wider range of events than might be contained the survey question. The prevalence rates reported by respondents are at the higher end of the range of lifetime exposure rates reported. This finding requires further research and may have implications for selection and resilience issues among members, especially in the work-context of repeated exposure to traumatic events and the potentially cumulative impact of these exposures on psychological, health and performance outcomes and suicidality risks identified in the literature review. The following table shows the trauma screening question outcome, excluding those who selected Skip Question: GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 24 Figure 9: Trauma Screening Yes or No Selections by Gender (Exc. Skip Question: n=2,071) Gender Male Female Total Yes 1,285 532 % 90.68% 81.35% No 132 122 % 9.32% 18.65% Total 1,417 654 Total % 68.42% 31.58% 1,817 87.74% 254 12.26% 2,071 100.00% For table 5, in excluding those who selected “Skip Question” for the trauma screening item, we see reported rates of exposure to lifetime trauma at higher rates than reported for the overall sample. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 25 The breakdown of symptoms by gender and relative percentages is given below: Figure 10: Analysis of Symptoms by Gender Total Males Females 1,817 100.0% 1,285 70.7% 532 29.3% 671 463 208 36.93% 36.03% 39.10% 583 405 178 % Selecting Symptom 32.09% 31.52% 33.46% Felt numb or detached from people, activities, or your surroundings? 547 402 145 % Selecting Symptom 30.10% 31.28% 27.26% Been constantly on guard, watchful, or easily startled? 384 272 112 % Selecting Symptom 21.13% 21.17% 21.05% 281 189 92 15.47% 14.71% 17.29% Yes Selected % of Yes Tried hard not to think about the event(s) or went out of your way to avoid situations that reminded you of the event(s)? % Selecting Symptom Had nightmares about the event(s) or thought about the event(s) when you did not want to? Felt guilty or unable to stop blaming yourself for the event(s) or any problems the event(s) may have caused? % Selecting Symptom From the above table, for those selecting symptoms included (n=1,817), the most frequent overall symptom (36.93% of the total sample selecting yes for trauma exposure) among males GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 26 and females was “Tried hard not to think about the event(s) or went out of your way to avoid situations that reminded you of the event(s)” (36.03% of males and 39.10% of males). Females were more likely to select this avoidant symptom while males more frequently reported feeling numb or detached (31.28% for males, 27.26 for females). In relation to what might be described as accumulated symptoms, an analysis of the frequency of symptoms among participants was also calculated. This established the numbers of respondents who reported a cumulative number of symptoms, between one and five of the total symptoms included in the trauma screening questionnaire. Figure 11: Symptom Count Analysis Trauma Screening: Symptom Count No/Skip Question 0 symptoms 1 symptom 2 symptoms 3 symptoms 4 symptoms 5 symptoms Total Male Female Total 203 410 463 165 114 69 64 184 173 169 81 59 23 27 387 583 632 246 173 92 91 1,488 716 2,204 Male Female Total 875 412 247 133 64 359 190 109 50 27 1,234 602 356 183 91 Cumulative Cumulative % Symptoms % 17.56% 26.45% 28.68% 11.16% 7.85% 4.17% 4.13% 632 878 1,051 1,143 1,234 28.68% 39.84% 47.69% 51.86% 55.99% Accumulated Symptoms 1 or more symptoms 2 or more symptoms 3 or more symptoms 4 or more symptoms 5 or more symptoms % 55.99% 27.31% 16.15% 8.30% 4.13% As can be seen from the first part of this table, 55.99% of respondents selected at least one symptom from those included in the trauma screening questionnaire. In the second part of this table, under Accumulated Symptoms, we see that 4.13% (or 91 respondents) reported having 5 or more symptoms. For the purposes of considering a potential diagnosis of PTSD, in a clinical interview context where the survey screening questionnaire was used, those reporting three or more symptoms would be considered likely to have PTSD (Prins et al. 2016). Therefore, from the table above, GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 27 16.15% of the overall 2,204 sample might be considered to have PTSD. This equates to approximately one in six of the overall sample having a possible diagnosis of PTSD. As discussed above, a sub-clinical or sub-threshold manifestation of PTSD symptoms may also lead to similarly poor outcomes in a range of life and work domains. If two or more symptoms are assumed to represent a possible sub-diagnostic level of post-traumatic stress, which may still cause significant distress and predict poor outcomes, we see that 27.31% of the overall sample may have a sub or partial PTSD consequence of exposure to trauma. This would equate to nearly one in four of the sample having a sub-threshold or partial-PTSD, as a result of trauma. If this assumption is applied to those who reported yes to having experienced trauma (n=1,817), then 33.13%, a third of those who experienced trauma, reported significant symptoms of trauma (two or more symptoms). In summary, 16.15% of the total sample (n=2,204) have a potential clinically diagnosable level of PTSD. If two or more symptoms are assumed to be indicative of partial-PTSD, then over one in four participating members are what might be described as walking wounded in respect of the impact of trauma. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 28 WELLBEING IMPACT RESULTS The following table shows the top ten items (of forty-nine items) ranked by Impact. Impact is calculated by multiplying the frequency of items by the average impact recorded. The complete, ranked Impact Analysis for all 49 final items is included in Appendix C. Figure 12: Top Ten Impact Analysis Items Which of these have impacted members in the past 12 months Feeling frustrated by the amount of paperwork involved with your job? Not having the right equipment to enable you to do your job properly? Believing that senior officers and managers don't appreciate the challenges you face in your role? Witnessing nepotism in appointments to jobs/roles within the force? Having to work unsocial hours that impact on family and friends? Having insufficient training on the technical skills required for your work? Always feeling physically tired because of the hours you work? Believing that your overall remuneration package is inadequate? Feeling undervalued for your contribution to the wider force? Having too many work demands to be effective in your role? * Percentage (frequency) of members reporting item as important Total Sample % Impacted * Impact ** Rank 2,204 95.01% 4.23 1 2,204 94.01% 4.16 2 2,204 94.65% 4.16 3 629 92.05% 4.02 4 2,204 91.79% 3.91 5 2,204 92.38% 3.88 6 2,204 91.92% 3.74 7 2,204 90.70% 3.70 8 2,204 91.24% 3.70 9 2,204 91.70% 3.69 10 ** The frequency multiplied by average importance for each question In comparison with the police study carried out by Juniper in 2010 (n=822), the results of this 2018 survey indicate that the portion of rank and file Gardaí impacted by these issues and the overall impact scores reported, are substantially higher than reported by Juniper. However, the Juniper study included higher ranking officers in the survey, therefore the comparison is not definitive. The range and severity of the impact of these issues on respondents appears high. This indicates that a high frequency of impactful wellbeing issues exists in day to day Garda life. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 29 From the above, we see the impact of the amount of paperwork involved with the job as the most frequently impactful item or issue for members in the past twelve months, in addition this was the item reported with the highest average importance. Equipment (and uniform) issues are long-standing and persistent challenges in Irish policing, that have formed part of GRA policy for many years and are second in the ranking. Insufficient training and lacking technical skills also emerged as a significant issue, with an impact score of 3.88 and ranked at sixth. Unsocial hours, and the effect these have on family life, rank fifth in the Impact Analysis with an impact score of 3.9, and is another significant concern for members. Perhaps related to this, fatigue due the hours worked is ranked seventh. These issues could affect the belief among members that they have too many work demands, a concern ranked tenth in the wellbeing survey. As has been outlined, an item on nepotism was included as it emerged as a free text theme during the survey. The impact is ranked fourth. From within the organisational domain described by Juniper et al. (2010) there are two items: management not appreciating the challenges faced by members and members feeling undervalued which were also reported among the most significant issues, ranked at third and ninth respectively. Remuneration remains an issue, ranked at eighth in the survey. It should be recalled that these issues are not solely about the personal lives of members but also about their performance in their interactions with the public and carrying out duties. Combined with issues identified in the trauma section of the survey, and as we will see from the thematic analysis below, the issues identified, and their frequency among members and perceived importance among respondents indicate a wide range of wellbeing and trauma related issues potentially adversely affecting the performance of AGS. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 30 FREE TEXT RESPONSE RESULTS There were 822 free text responses given by survey respondents. The free text element of the questionnaire was designed to provide space for respondent commentary on other issues that had not been addressed in the wellbeing questionnaire. During the survey, the free text option was also used by respondents to comment on the items contained in the wellbeing section of the survey, in addition to other issues of interest to respondents that the option was designed for. Profanities were removed. The free text data were edited for clarity where appropriate and content anonymised to prevent possible identification of individuals or police stations. The overall total of themes recorded was greater than the number of responses received (n=822), as individual responses may have contained more than one theme. Each recorded theme was separately identifiable in the relevant response, and a given theme was only included once for each response. The word cloud generated by the free text is as follows: Figure 13: Free Text Word Cloud In reviewing and assigning themes to the free text responses, the following 15 most frequent themes and their frequencies were: GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 31 Figure 14: Top 15 Free Text Themes and Frequency The thematic analysis of the free text comments supports the ranked outcomes of the wellbeing element of the survey and indicate issues related to supports received in the GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 32 aftermath of work-related trauma. The comments made under the recorded themes provide corroborative qualitative data for the other findings of the survey. The respondent comments are negative in sentiment. Some of the comments are of concern. The three most frequent themes will be discussed in the context of the overall survey below. The full, cleaned and anonymised list of free text responses is included in Appendix D below. THEME: MANAGEMENT The highest number of 269 comments in the free text element of the wellbeing survey were made by participants in respect of the management theme. One participant stated (#12 in Appendix D, below) “Serious lack of communication between management and members on both positive and negative issues”. Covering a range of themes, including management, response #17 stated: Uniforms, equipment and vehicles unfit for purpose. Management not trust worthy, huge cover your back culture, no courses on offer for younger members and no promotion unless your [sic] incompetent and have pull. Another participant, reflecting these issues, stated in response #40: Most of the issues concerning me come about because of poor outdated equipment, poor managers lacking training and people skills to deal with modern day issues and the amount of nepotism involved in placing unsuitable people in important positions. Another comment under the management theme (#89) was [sic]: Feeling so overwelmed by the workload, stress and guilt from perhaps being unable to fulfill my duties for what i signed up for in the job. So disillusioned and frustrated and feel management dont understand what guards have to put up with on the ground, from public etc. The comments in this theme, as for the other themes reviewed, were mainly negative in sentiment. In reflecting on this theme, the findings of the wellbeing section of the survey are corroborated as these relate to the “Organisational” domain developed by Juniper et al. (2010) referred to above. Two of the Organisational domain questions appear in the top ten impact analysis results: those related to (a) the challenges of the job not being appreciated by senior management and (b) feeling undervalued. THEME: EQUIPMENT, IT AND FACILITIES This was the second most frequently arising theme on the review of the free text responses, with 171 comments analysed under this heading. The theme included comments made in respect of uniforms, vehicles, computers and facilities. Incorporating the theme related to paperwork, one respondent said (#801), “Having to fill out 3 forms to claim sub, no stinger in most cars, no ampr [sic: automatic number plate recognition?] in most cars, uniform not fit for purpose”. Another respondent (#534) stated, “Very poor equipment, cars. Nowhere to GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 33 rest during break i.e. a couch. Very poor frontline management, endless paperwork. Hard to get basics like paper, staplers, pens, batteries!” THEME: SUPPORT The third most numerous theme was related to support, with 159 comments recorded. Response #822 reported: Lack of any form of support after traumatic event. 24hr phone support service is not sufficient. After a traumatic incident I developed PTSD and was told by the state that they would not pay for counselling. Medical insurance would not cover it as trauma occurred on duty. Told to pay for it out of my own pocket. Seriously affected my life and work for the best part of a decade afterwards. Wasn't even invited to be assessed by [ ] over it. This perspective was supported by response #808 which said: Having attended numerous scenes of murders dead bodies fatal accidents scenes of horrific nature, 23 years and still never been offered counselling. Peer Support options [are inadequate]. Anything you tell them will be heard back. Zero confidentiality so nobody tells anybody anything and nobody talks about traumatic scenarios. Another comment, #787 also supported these perspectives, “Mental health issues are not being addressed whatsoever. Non-existent post traumatic event debriefing or support.”. While this comment may not reflect the practical availability of supports, it is an opinion shared by a number of respondents and demonstrates at best an impression of the services available. Overall, issues related to management and communication are pervasive in the comments made in this section of the survey. Despite the level of organisational investment that is reported, it appears that the perception for many respondents does not yet reflect the impact of changes on the ground. More than one third of the survey respondents made comments in the free text section, few of these were supportive of a view that changes in the organisation are having an impact. This is perhaps also an issue of culture and the legacy of this may prevail even where substantial investment is or has been made. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 34 DISCUSSION In this section, a discussion of the overall survey and its implications will be provided. Initial review of the large data set generated indicates that there are few practically significant statistical outcomes that cannot be observed from the raw data analysed for this report. We can see from the above analysis that the experience of trauma and the impact of this appears to be consistent with other police forces, albeit at the higher end of reported ranges. Consistent with the literature, female participants appear to have a lower prevalence of PTSD relative to the rates reported among males in the general population, but have similar rates of PTSD as male police officers. It may be that female police can teach us about how to manage and respond to the impact of trauma. It may also emerge, though it is not immediately apparent from the data in this survey, that female and male police have different pathways in their experience of trauma and may require bespoke responses to trauma. The diagnostic framework of Prins et al. (2016) suggests that one in six responding members may have PTSD. If we accept the sub-threshold perspective of PTSD given in this report, and the impact of reported symptoms, we have seen that 27% of respondents may have significant symptoms of PTSD, to a level that could have substantial implications for work performance, health and the personal lives of members. The literature reviewed has demonstrated an ethical obligation, an evolving legal context and an economic paradigm in which organisations are increasingly obliged to provide more focused supports for staff exposed to work-related traumas. The impact analysis confirms many of the issues that have been identified by GRA for several years. Equipment and uniform issues are particularly long-standing and persistent challenges in Irish policing. The impact of feeling overwhelmed by paperwork, and its impact on wellbeing, is established in the literature. This survey provides evidence to suggest the significant wellbeing impact paperwork issues in the Irish context. The concern about unsocial hours and the effect these have on family life has also been identified as a significant concern, as has the importance of feeling tired as a result of the hours worked. This issue is perhaps related to the perception of having too many work demands reported in the wellbeing survey. Nepotism emerged as another issue during the survey. The impact of this appears in the top ten impact analysis items. In the organisational domain, management not appreciating the challenges faced by members and members feeling undervalued were also reported among the most important and impactful issues. Related to this issue, we can see how communication was often referred to in the free text element of the report. Issues related to remuneration were ranked at eighth in the survey. As for all the challenges identified, issues around management being able to undertake positive communication with members are apparent. A belief that there is a significant lack of training for members is evident from the wellbeing survey and from the comments in the free text section. The frequency and level of importance that members assign to these issues indicate a widespread concern with, and impact of, these issues. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 35 In considering the free text element of the survey, the 822 comments made by members are significantly negative in sentiment with few positive comments made about the organisation. While an organisation may consider that it is performing well overall, the tone and content of these negative comments and their volume indicate that a significant number of members are adversely affected by these issues. Taken in conjunction with the trauma and wellbeing survey, and issues that we have seen emerge publicly related to the organisation, we see an institution that is under much pressure. We know from the literature that organisational issues can cause greater stress on police than operational activities. Considered in conjunction with the significant changes being experienced by the force, the findings of the GRA survey suggest an organisation that is in an agitated state of flux. It should be acknowledged that An Garda Síochána is undergoing significant organisational changes and modernisation, accompanied by substantial financial investment. In relation to management and care of its staff, the Modernisation and Renewal Programme 2016-2021 of An Garda Síochána (p.83) said: Policing as a profession continues to be regarded worldwide as one of the most dangerous and stressful careers. A renewed emphasis will be placed on the psychological and physical wellbeing of our members and staff. An internal Garda survey report, referred to in the Modernisation and Renewal Programme (ibid.), found: • Low levels of morale • The importance of maintaining community policing approach • Need for ongoing training • Transparency in promotion process • Availability of resources and budget constraints • Greater interaction from senior managers with the people they work with at all levels Aside from the community policing issue noted above, which was not within the scope of this study, the other findings reveal issues that persist to a high degree and are corroborated by the 2018 GRA survey. We see from this survey how difficult it appears for members to consistently access treatment for their traumas. Again, comments in public have been made about this concern for many years. The fear of our own trauma and that of others is present in us all, both consciously and unconsciously. Psychodynamic perspectives on human nature have suggested that these fears and internal dynamics are replicated in the group and organisational contexts. It appears that AGS has a fear of thoroughly accepting and responding to the repeated traumas of its GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 36 members. Based on the findings of the survey, and given the prevailing institutional context of the organisation, for rank and file members it appears that An Garda Síochána is a cauldron for adversity in relation to trauma and wellbeing. This adversity appears to be incremental to the normal day to day stresses that members encounter. In the introduction to her seminal book Trauma and Recovery, Herman (2015) wrote: The conflict between the will to deny horrible events and the will to proclaim them aloud is the central dialectic of psychological trauma. People who have survived atrocities often tell their stories in a highly emotional, contradictory, and fragmented manner which undermines their credibility and thereby serves the twin imperatives of truth-telling and secrecy. When the truth is finally recognized, survivors can begin their recovery. But far too often secrecy prevails, and the story of the traumatic event surfaces not as a verbal narrative but as a symptom. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 37 RECOMMENDATIONS Based on the results of this study, and in the context of addressing trauma and wellbeing related objectives of this study, it is recommended that the GRA continues this conversation with its members by carrying out regular research of member wellbeing and related concerns. In addition, based on the findings of this study, there are areas which it is recommended AGS should incorporate into its ongoing reform and modernisation efforts. These include: 1. Prompt review of and resource investment in PTSD and trauma treatment pathways, to address current, significant shortcomings and to facilitate the potentially long-term treatment necessary for members who have significant or chronic symptoms of trauma and PTSD, and who are experiencing distress and impairment. Timely, measured and effective resolution of occupational health issues related to these issues should be a core element of interventions. 2. A research study that engages AGS members should be undertaken to establish optimum and appropriate educational, briefing, intervention pathways and treatment protocols for members who have experienced work-related trauma. These elements should be developed within the unique organisational context of AGS and should include consideration of mandatory interventions and compulsory injury leave for certain types of work-related incidents. 3. Efforts to normalise the actuality of stress and trauma and managing the impact of these in this unique working environment should be prioritised. 4. AGS should review and publish annual figures including treatment and occupational timescales and outcome measures for those receiving treatment for relevant workrelated injuries. 5. The electronic gathering of operational data and automation of paper-based data capture should be pursued systematically and vigorously where possible. 6. Renewed and continual effort should be taken to resolve issues with resourcing, particularly as these may relate to the impact of unsocial hours and fatigue reported in this survey. 7. Equipment and operational uniforms should be modernised, as reported in the top ten Impact Analysis outcomes and in the free text response results. 8. To address the impact of nepotism, promotion processes should be open and transparent and subject to formal, independent oversight. Related to this recommendation, is a need to further understand and address the prevalence of nepotism reported by GRA members. 9. The Continuing Professional Development (CPD) and training needs of each AGS member should be audited and timebound plans made for bringing knowledge and training up to date. This plan should be communicated to each member. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 38 REFERENCES Adler, A. B., Huffman, A. H., Bliese, P. D., & Castro, C. A. (2005). The impact of deployment length and experience on the well-being of male and female soldiers. Journal of occupational health psychology, 10(2), 121. American Psychiatric Association (APA). (1980). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders. 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Increasing psychological well-being and resilience by psychotherapeutic methods. Journal of personality, 77(6), 1903-1934. Ferry, F., Bunting, B., Murphy, S., O'Neill, S., Stein, D., & Koenen, K. (2014). Traumatic events and their relative PTSD burden in Northern Ireland: a consideration of the impact of the 'Troubles'. Social Psychiatry & Psychiatric Epidemiology, 49(3), 435-446. doi:10.1007/s00127013-0757-0. Headey, B. W., & Wearing, A. J. (1989). Personality, life events and subjective well-being: Toward a dynamic equilibrium model. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 57, 731– 739. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.57.4.731. Headey, B. W., & Wearing, A. J. (1991). Subjective well-being: a stocks and flows framework. In Strack, F., Argyle, M., & Schwarz, N. (Eds.). Subjective Wellbeing – An interdisciplinary perspective (pp. 49–76). Oxford: Pergamon Press. Headey, B. W., & Wearing, A. J. (1992). Understanding happiness: A theory of subjective wellbeing. Melbourne: Longman Cheshire. Herman, J. L. (2015). Trauma and recovery: The aftermath of violence--from domestic abuse to political terror. Hachette UK. Irish Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (2018). Code of Ethics and Practice for Counsellors/Psychotherapists. Downloaded from https://iacp.ie/iacp-code-of-ethics on May 28, 2018. Javidi, H., & Yadollahie, M. (2011). Post-traumatic stress disorder. The international journal of occupational and environmental medicine, 3(1 January). Juniper, B. (2010). Evaluation of a novel approach to measuring well-being in the workplace. (Doctoral Dissertation). Cranfield Health. Downloaded from https://dspace.lib.cranfield. ac.uk/bitstream/handle/1826/6851/Bridget_Juniper_Thesis_2010.pdf?sequence=1&isAllow ed=y on March 5th, 2018. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 40 Juniper, B., White, N., & Bellamy, P. (2010). A new approach to evaluating the well-being of police. Occupational medicine, 60(7), 560-565. Karam, E. G., Friedman, M. J., Hill, E. D., Kessler, R. C., McLaughlin, K. A., Petukhova, M., & ... Kovess-Masfety, V. (2014). Cumulative Traumas and Risk Thresholds: 12-Month PTSD in the World Mental Health (WMH) Surveys. Depression & Anxiety (1091-4269), 31(2), 130-142. doi:10.1002/da.22169. Kilpatrick, D. G., Resnick, H. S., Milanak, M. E., Miller, M. W., Keyes, K. M., & Friedman, M. J. (2013). National estimates of exposure to traumatic events and PTSD prevalence using DSMIV and DSM-5 criteria. Journal of traumatic stress, 26(5), 537-547. Kop, N., Euwema, M., & Schaufeli, W. (1999). Burnout, job stress and violent behaviour among Dutch police officers. Work & Stress, 13(4), 326-340. doi:10.1080/02678379950019789. Lilly, M. M., Ph.D., N. P., Best, S. R., Metzler, T., & Marmar, C. R. (2009). Gender and PTSD: What Can We Learn from Female Police Officers? Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 23(6), 767– 774. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.janxdis.2009.02.015 McCarty, W. P., “Solomon” Zhao, J., & Garland, B. E. (2007). Occupational stress and burnout between male and female police officers: Are there any gender differences? Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies & Management, 30(4), 672-691. McNiffe, L. (1997). A History of the Garda Síochána: A Social History of the Force 1922-52, with an Overview of the Years 1952-97. Irish American Book Company. Maia, D. B., Marmar, C. R., Metzler, T., Nóbrega, A., Berger, W., Mendlowicz, M. V., ... & Figueira, I. (2007). Post-traumatic stress symptoms in an elite unit of Brazilian police officers: prevalence and impact on psychosocial functioning and on physical and mental health. Journal of affective disorders, 97(1), 241-245. Maguire, B. J., Hunting, K. L., Guidotti, T. L., & Smith, G. S. (2005). Occupational injuries among emergency medical services personnel. Prehospital Emergency Care, 9(4), 405-411. Marshall, R. D., Olfson, M., Hellman, F., Blanco, C., Guardino, M., & Struening, E. L. (2001). Comorbidity, impairment, and suicidality in subthreshold PTSD. American Journal of Psychiatry, 158(9), 1467-1473. Milner, A., Witt, K., LaMontagne, A. D., & Niedhammer, I. (2018). Psychosocial job stressors and suicidality: a meta-analysis and systematic review. Occup Environ Med, 75(4), 245-253. Mota, N. P., Tsai, J., Sareen, J., Marx, B. P., Wisco, B. E., Harpaz-Rotem, I., ... & Pietrzak, R. H. (2016). High burden of subthreshold DSM-5 post-traumatic stress disorder in US military veterans. World Psychiatry, 15(2), 185-186. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 41 Olff, M. (2015). Choosing the right instruments for psychotrauma related research. European journal of psychotraumatology. ISSN: 2000-8198 12/2015 6(1), 30585. Olff, M. (2017). Sex and gender differences in post-traumatic stress disorder: an update. European Journal of Psychotraumatology, 8(sup4), 1351204. http://doi.org/10.1080/20008198.2017.1351204 Prins, A., Bovin, M. J., Smolenski, D. J., Marx, B. P., Kimerling, R., Jenkins-Guarnieri, M. A., ... & Tiet, Q. Q. (2016). The primary care PTSD screen for DSM-5 (PC-PTSD-5): development and evaluation within a veteran primary care sample. Journal of general internal medicine, 31(10), 1206-1211. Rani, R., Garg, P., & Rastogi, R. (2018). Organizational justice and psychological wellbeing of police employees: A relationship study. IJAME. Rutkow, L., Gable, L., & Links, J. M. (2011). Protecting the mental health of first responders: legal and ethical considerations. The Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics, 39, 56-59. Shane, J. M. (2010). Organizational stressors and police performance. Journal of criminal justice, 38(4), 807-818. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). (2008). Issue Brief #1 for employers: Save your company money by assuring access to substance abuse treatment. Washington, DC: Author. Taylor, M., Ryan, D., Quayle, E., and O’Sullivan K. (1998) Stress and Coping Among Members of the Garda Síochána at Garda Rank. University College Cork, Ireland. US Department of Veteran Affairs (n.d) PTSD: National Center for PTSD. DSM 5 Criteria. Downloaded from https://www.ptsd.va.gov/professional/ptsdoverview/dsm5_criteria_ptsd.asp on May 20, 2018. Violanti, J. M., Charles, L. E., McCanlies, E., Hartley, T. A., Baughman, P., Andrew, M. E., ... & Burchfiel, C. M. (2017). Police stressors and health: a state-of-the-art review. Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies & Management, 40(4), 642-656. Virtanen, M. (2018). Psychosocial job stressors and suicidality: can stress at work lead to suicide? Occup Environ Med, 75(4), 243-244. Weathers FW, Litz BT, Herman DS, Huska JA, Keane TM. The PTSD Checklist (PCL): Reliability, validity, and diagnostic utility. Paper presented at the Annual Convention of the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies; San Antonio, TX. 1993. Winwood, P. C., Tuckey, M. R., Peters, R., & Dollard, M. F. (2009). Identification and measurement of work-related psychological injury: piloting the psychological injury risk GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 42 indicator among frontline police. Journal of occupational and environmental medicine, 51(9), 1057-1065. Wise, E. A., & Beck, J. G. (2015). Work-related trauma, PTSD, and workers compensation legislation: Implications for practice and policy. Psychological trauma: theory, research, practice, and policy, 7(5), 500. Zlotnick, C., Franklin, C. L., & Zimmerman, M. (2002). Does “subthreshold” posttraumatic stress disorder have any clinical relevance? Comprehensive psychiatry, 43(6), 413-419. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 43 APPENDIX A: FINAL SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE Garda Wellbeing Survey 2018 Online Questionnaire (appearance differs to online and mobile phone environments) GRA Wellbeing Survey 2018 (Final) Start of Block: INFORMED_CONSENT WELCOME Welcome to the GRA Wellbeing Survey 2018. We are interested in understanding the Wellbeing of GRA members and impact of Trauma experienced by members. You will be presented with information relevant to Wellbeing and Trauma and asked to answer some questions related to these. Apart from GRA Committee members canvassing your participation, the survey is carried out independently of GRA and of An Garda Síochána. Your responses will be kept anonymous and confidential. The study should take you around eight (8) minutes to complete. Your participation in this research is voluntary. You have the right to withdraw at any point while taking the study, for any reason, and without any prejudice. If you would like to contact the Principal Investigator in the study to discuss this research, please e-mail finian.fallon@citycolleges.ie. A published report of aggregated data from this survey will be produced by the Principal Investigator, Dr Finian Fallon and City Colleges, Dublin. By clicking the button below, you acknowledge that your participation in the study is voluntary, you are at least 18 years of age, you are a member of An Garda Síochána and you are aware that you may choose to terminate your participation in the study at any time during its completion and for any reason. The survey may be completed on a Smartphone, but some features may be less compatible for use on a mobile device. The survey will be best displayed on a laptop or desktop computer. Responses to the survey are restricted to one per laptop or desktop computer. For this reason, and for privacy, you are advised not to take this survey on Garda computers. If you require any assistance as a result of completing the survey please see the final page GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 44 of the survey where there are contact numbers and resources for supports. o I consent, I am a member of An Garda Síochána, begin the study o I do not consent, I do not wish to participate End of Block: INFORMED_CONSENT Start of Block: DEMOGRAPHICS GENDER What is your gender? o Male o Female AGE What age are you? o 18 - 24 o 25 - 34 o 35 - 44 o 45 - 54 o 55 - 64 ROLE What best describes your Garda role? o Operational (Uniform) o Operational (Plain Clothes) o Clerical o Garda Trainee o Other (Describe Briefly) ________________________________________________ GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 45 REGION What Garda Region do you work in? o Dublin Metropolitan Region o Northern Region o Western Region o Eastern Region o Southern Region o South Eastern Region End of Block: DEMOGRAPHICS Start of Block: IMPACT ANALYSIS GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 46 QUESTIONS For each of the following questions, please indicate which of these may have impacted on you, and how bothersome or important this impact has been to you, in the past twelve months: GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 47 Did not impact me (0) Did Impact Me: Not At All Important (1) Did Impact Me: Not Very Important (2) Did Impact Me: Of Neutral Importance (3) Did Impact Me: Very Important (4) Did Impact Me: Extremely Important (5) Having a poor diet because of the job that you do? o o o o o o Always feeling physically tired because of the hours you work? o o o o o o Being unable to improve/maintain physical fitness because of your job? o o o o o o Not being able to sleep well because of work worries? o o o o o o Experiencing musculoskeletal problems because of your work eg back complaints? o o o o o o Putting on weight because of your job? o o o o o o o o o o o o Experiencing gastrointestinal problems because of your work eg stomach complaints? o o o o o o Not having the right equipment to enable you to do your job properly? o o o o o o Experiencing neural problems because of your work eg headaches? GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 48 o o o o o o o o o o o o Believing that your overall remuneration package is inadequate? o o o o o o Having a job where there is little day-to-day variation? o o o o o o Not having a clear understanding of your work priorities? o o o o o o Lacking control over your priorities at work? o o o o o o Feeling overwhelmed by the amount of organisational change within the force? o o o o o o Believing that senior officers and managers don't appreciate the challenges you face in your role? o o o o o o Being concerned about how your job may change in the future? o o o o o o Feeling undervalued for your contribution to the wider force? o o o o o o Not being paid overtime? Lacking sufficient flexibility over working times and patterns? GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 49 Receiving inadequate communications on issues that matter to you? o o o o o o Being concerned about losing your job because of organisational changes? o o o o o o Experiencing high levels of stress because of organisational changes? o o o o o o Being bullied or witnessing bullying among colleagues? o o o o o o Believing that your promotion opportunities in the force are limited? o o o o o o Having an unsatisfactory performance appraisal system? o o o o o o Having insufficient training on softer skills eg people management? o o o o o o Not feeling sufficiently challenged by your job? o o o o o o Feeling under pressure to attend work when you are unwell? o o o o o o Experiencing high levels of stress because of your work? o o o o o o GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 50 Experiencing persistent low moods because of your work? o o o o o o Feeling frustrated by the amount of paperwork involved with your job? o o o o o o Feeling demoralised because of your work? o o o o o o Having to work unsocial hours that impact on family and friends? o o o o o o Finding it difficult to book leave because of underresourcing? o o o o o o Having holiday plans disrupted because of your work? o o o o o o Regularly having to come to work on your rest days? o o o o o o Not feeling valued in work by your line manager? o o o o o o Reporting to someone who lacks the skills to manage effectively? o o o o o o Not feeling part of a real team? o o o o o o o o o o o o Lacking a real sense of camaraderie with your team? GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 51 Being unable to take restful breaks during your working day due to workload? o o o o o o Having too many work demands to be effective in your role? o o o o o o Having to work extended hours because of your workload eg late nights? o o o o o o Having a poor quality work environment eg cramped accommodation? o o o o o o Lacking adequate facilities at your workplace eg canteen, showers? o o o o o o Having inadequate facilities for rest during your working day? o o o o o o Having insufficient training on the technical skills required for your work? o o o o o o Witnessing nepotism in appointments to jobs/roles within the force? o o o o o o Receiving inadequate support in the aftermath of work related incidents? o o o o o o GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 52 End of Block: IMPACT ANALYSIS Start of Block: FREE TEXT ITEM FREE TEXT Please add any comments you have about other issues that impact your work here... ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________ End of Block: FREE TEXT ITEM Start of Block: PTSD SCREEN QUESTION TRAUMA ASSESSMENT In this section of the survey, you will be asked about your experience of Trauma. If you do not wish to respond to this question, select the "Skip Question" option below. Sometimes things happen to people that are unusually or especially frightening, horrible or traumatic. For example: a serious accident or fire a physical or sexual assault or abuse an earthquake or flood a war seeing someone killed or seriously injured having a loved one die through homicide or suicide Have you ever experience this kind of event? o Yes o No o Skip Question GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 53 TRAUMA SYMPTOMS Having answered Yes to the previous question, IN THE PAST MONTH, have you (select ALL that apply)... ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ Had nightmares about the event(s) or thought about the event(s) when you did not want to? Tried hard not to think about the event(s) or went out of your way to avoid situations that reminded you of the event(s)? Been constantly on guard, watchful, or easily startled? Felt numb or detached from people, activities, or your surroundings? Felt guilty or unable to stop blaming yourself for the event(s) or any problems the event(s) may have caused? End of Block: PTSD Exit Screen Thank you for participating in this important survey. The results of the survey will be published shortly. If you have any problems or issues as a result of responding to this survey the following options may be of assistance: Contact your GP Garda Counselling Support Confidential Helpline: Call 1800 817 433 Samaritans: Call 116 123 or send a text to 087 260 9090 Aware: Call 1800 80 48 48 The National Suicide Helpline (Pieta House): Call 1800 247 24 Your GRA representative or see the Garda Representative Association website: www.gra.ie Please also see information on Trauma and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) from the US Veteran's Administration Website here: https://www.ptsd.va.gov/ GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 54 APPENDIX B: FINALISED DOMAINS AND ITEMS (JUNIPER, 2010) Physical Health (PHY) Job (JOB) Organisational (ORG) Advancement (ADV) Psychological Health (PSY) Home Work Interface (HWI) Interpersonal Relationships (REL) Workload (WL) Workplace Facilities (FAC) Having a poor diet because of the job that you do? Not having the right equipment to enable you to do your job properly? Believing that your promotion opportunities in the force are limited? Feeling under pressure to attend work when you are unwell? Being unable to take restful breaks during your working day due to workload? Having a poor quality work environment eg cramped accommodation? Not being paid overtime? Having an unsatisfactory performance appraisal system? Experiencing high levels of stress because of your work? Having to work unsociable hours that impact on family and friends? Finding it difficult to book leave because of underresourcing? Not feeling valued for your work by your line manager? Always feeling physically tired because of the hours you work? Reporting to someone who lacks the skills to manage effectively? Having too many work demands to be effective in your role? Lacking adequate facilities at your workplace eg canteen, showers? Being unable to improve/maintain physical fitness because of your job? Lacking sufficient flexibility over working times and patterns? Feeling overwhelmed by the amount of organisational change within the force? Believing that senior officers and managers don't appreciate the challenges you face in your role? Being concerned about how your job may change in the future? Experiencing persistent low moods because of your work? Having to work extended hours because of your workload eg late nights? Having inadequate facilities for rest during your working day? Believing that your overall compensation package is inadequate? Feeling undervalued for your contribution by the wider force? Having holiday plans disrupted because of your work? Regularly having to come to work on your rest days? Not feeling part of a real team? Not being able to sleep well because of work worries? Having insufficient training on the technical skills required for your work? Receiving insufficient training on softer skills eg people management Experiencing musculoskeletal problems because of your work eg back complaints? Putting on weight because of your job? Having a job where there is little day-today variation? Receiving inadequate communications on issues that matter to you? Not feeling sufficiently challenged by your job? Feeling demoralised because of your work? Not having a clear understanding of your main work priorities? Experiencing neural problems because of your work eg headaches? Lacking control over your priorities at work? Being concerned about losing your job because of organisational changes? Experiencing high levels of stress because of organisational changes? Feeling frustrated by the amount of paperwork involved with your job? Lacking a real sense of camaraderie with your team? Experiencing gastrointestinal problems because of your work eg stomach complaints? GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 55 APPENDIX C: FINAL IMPACT ANALYSIS (Appendix C. Impact Analysis and Ranking for All Items: Page 1 of 3) Rank Total Sample Did Impact Impact % Impact Frequency # Impact Importance Average IMPACT Believing that senior Having Having officers Having Being Always and to work Believing insufficient too concerned managers Witnessing unsocial Feeling Not feeling that your training on many Receiving about nepotism hours frustrated Not having don't Believing being Having physically Feeling overall the inadequate Experiencin how by the that your able to a poor that the right appreciate in tired undervalue work appointme impact technical because remunerati d for your demands your job communica g high promotion sleep diet amount of equipment the Feeling on package contributio to be skills paperwork to enable challenges nts to tions on demoralise opportuniti well because on may of the levels of is involved you to do you face jobs/roles family required hours n to the effective change in issues that stress d because es in the because of the within the and matter to because of of your with your your job in your force are of work job that inadequate wider in your the for your you job? properly? role? force? force? future? you? limited? worries? you do? friends? work? work? ? role? your work? work? 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 2,204 2,204 2,204 629 2,204 2,204 2,204 2,204 2,204 2,204 2,204 2,204 2,204 2,204 2,204 2,204 2,204 2,094 2,072 2,086 579 2,023 2,036 2,026 1,999 2,011 2,021 2,033 2,020 2,017 1,939 1,834 1,950 1,886 95.01% 94.01% 94.65% 92.05% 91.79% 92.38% 91.92% 90.70% 91.24% 91.70% 92.24% 91.65% 91.52% 87.98% 83.21% 88.48% 85.57% 0.9501 0.9401 0.9465 0.9205 0.9179 0.9238 0.9192 0.9070 0.9124 0.9170 0.9224 0.9165 0.9152 0.8798 0.8321 4.45 4.43 4.40 4.37 4.26 4.20 4.07 4.08 4.05 4.02 3.99 4.01 4.01 3.98 4.19 3.88 3.99 4.23 4.16 4.16 4.02 3.91 3.88 3.74 3.70 3.70 3.69 3.68 3.68 3.67 3.50 3.49 3.43 3.41 GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 56 0.8848 0.8557 (Appendix C. Impact Analysis and Ranking for All Items: Page 2 of 3) Rank Total Sample Did Impact Impact % Impact Frequency # Impact Importanc Averag e e IMPACT Being unable to take restful breaks during your working day due to workload ? 18 2,204 1,910 86.66% Receiving inadequat e support in the aftermath of work related incidents? 19 627 516 82.30% Feeling overwhel m ed by the amount of organisati o nal change within the force? 20 2,204 1,965 89.16% Lacking control over your prioritie s at work? 21 2,204 1,946 88.29% Having an unsatisfac t ory performa n ce appraisal system? 22 2,204 1,849 83.89% 0.8666 0.8230 0.8916 0.8829 0.8389 0.8181 0.8090 0.8607 0.8280 0.8516 3.93 4.13 3.75 3.77 3.95 4.02 4.05 3.79 3.91 3.41 3.40 3.34 3.33 3.31 3.29 3.28 3.26 3.24 Being Reporting Experienci unable to to improve/ Experienci n g high someone levels of m Finding it ng persistent difficult to book who lacks stress aintain leave because the skills to because of physical low moods of manage organisatio fitness because of underresourcin effectively nal because of your g? ? changes? your job? work? 23 24 25 26 27 2,204 2,204 2,204 2,204 2,204 1,803 1,783 1,897 1,825 1,877 81.81% 80.90% 86.07% 82.80% 85.16% GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 Having inadequat e facilities for rest during your working day? 28 2,204 1,771 80.35% Having a poor quality work environm e nt eg cramped accommo d ation? 31 2,204 1,703 77.27% Having to work extende d hours because of your workloa d eg late nights? 32 2,204 1,775 80.54% Experienci ng musculosk eletal Not problems feeling because of valued in your work work by your line eg back complaints manager ? ? 33 34 2,204 2,204 1,693 1,669 76.81% 75.73% Putting on weight becaus e of your job? 29 2,204 1,748 79.31% Having insufficien t training on softer skills eg people managem e nt? 30 2,204 1,831 83.08% 0.8035 0.7931 0.8308 0.7727 0.8054 0.7681 0.7573 3.81 3.96 4.00 3.71 3.97 3.70 3.86 3.86 3.24 3.18 3.17 3.08 3.07 2.98 2.96 2.92 57 (Appendix C. Impact Analysis and Ranking for All Items: Page 3 of 3) Feeling Experienci Lacking under Lacking pressure sufficient Having Not ng neural adequate Not to flexibility holiday having a problems facilities Regularly feeling clear plans because at your attend over having to part of workplace come to work working disrupted understan of your because ding of work eg eg work on Not being a when times of your your work headache canteen, your rest paid real you are and showers? days? unwell? patterns? work? priorities? s? overtime? team? 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 41 43 2,204 2,204 2,204 2,204 2,204 2,204 2,204 2,204 2,204 1,668 1,694 1,618 1,688 1,601 1,513 1,661 1,467 1,540 75.68% 76.86% 73.41% 76.59% 72.64% 68.65% 75.36% 66.56% 69.87% Rank Total Sample Did Impact Impact % Impact Frequency 0.7568 # Impact Importance 3.82 Average IMPACT 2.89 Experienci ng gastrointe stinal problems Lacking a Being because real bullied or of your sense of witnessin work eg camarade g bullying stomach rie with among complaint your colleagues team? s? ? 44 45 46 2,204 2,204 2,204 1,405 1,434 1,228 63.75% 65.06% 55.72% Being concerned about losing Not Having a your job feeling job where because sufficientl there is y of little organisati challenge daytoonal d by your day changes? job? variation? 47 48 49 2,204 2,204 2,204 1,291 1,313 1,269 58.58% 59.57% 57.58% 0.7686 0.7341 0.7659 0.7264 0.6865 0.7536 0.6656 0.6987 0.6375 0.6506 0.5572 0.5858 0.5957 0.5758 3.75 3.78 3.43 3.60 3.80 3.40 3.76 3.42 3.70 3.47 3.68 3.38 3.03 3.01 2.88 2.77 2.63 2.62 2.61 2.56 2.50 2.39 2.36 2.26 2.05 1.98 1.80 1.73 GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 58 APPENDIX D: EDITED AND REDACTED FREE TEXT COMMENTS # Comment 1 Cramped work space new civilians joining and no desks or computers for them! Management civilianising posts and saying that civilians are the same as Garda I welcome them but they are not the same they didn't have to put their lives on hold go to templemore for months have to work nights deal with violent prisoners they are not the same as Gardai I have an issue with that to be honest and I do work well with them and appreciate them but there are differences! 2 Nepotism, nepotism & nepotism. Poor senior management that lack understanding of what the job is about. 3 What's scares me most is management want to force the likes of palf & paf on us and can't seem to see that the job is broken. Due to mismanagement and nepotism they have systematically destroyed an garda siochana. Fix what is broken first before trying to implement change.. "an garda siochana, winging it since 1922" 4 Too much cpd work for probationers along with day to day workload 5 Unprofessional, untrained management 6 Things are changing on a daily basis, work practices are different from district to district. Management have risen through the ranks in offices and do not have an understanding of being out on the street and having to make decisions on the spot. Management should be made man a car for a shift every month 7 Sgt rank varies greatly, National service with very local policies/rules/ politics 8 There is no onus on members to maintain fitness or look after health/weight issues 9 I feelthe job is driven on changing where if they simply concentrated on supporting those on the front line and defend them instead of constantly bombarding them with new policies and discipline threats for failing to comply then we might have a good force but at present too many supers looking after No1 and forgetting what it was to actually police instead of sitting behind a desk. 10 Members being punished for looking to get transferred closer to home, i.e. not being offered courses. Courses too irregular and slow to come around. 11 I have had to take two periods of extended sick leave over the past [] years because of work related PTSD. While [] understood my sickness, unfortunately management did not and ignored both my own cries for help and the recommendations [], to a point where my mental health took a double hit both from my PTSD and management's intransigence and delay in dealing with my situation. Due to this totally avoidable delay in acting, I feel I am now abandoned to the scrap heap. 12 Serious lack of communication between management and members on both positive and negative issues 13 Lack of management willing to stand up for what is required to run force effectively. Ie resources, training, equipment and pay being insufficient 14 People with the best connections are the ones most likely to progress in the job. Women play a vital role in the job but there are a lot of women out on maternity leave now and that's putting massive pressure on manpower levels. Manpower is divided out between districts incorrectly e.g. [ ] workload in [ ] is greater than the workload in other 3 districts. Where's the logic? Population! - ridiculous. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 59 15 No support for trauma following the witnessing of serious incidents. Can't get out of head and nervous dealing with issues on a work and personal level. Constant anxious feeling. Welfare system present put I don't want to be seen to use same. First time to write something like this. 16 The organisation is in real danger of becoming a robotic force more concerned with ticking every available box it can come with on Pulse, Pems, Palf etc and I believe if it continues in the way it is going the Gardai in the future will find it difficult to think for themselves in the everyday demanding situations they encounter. They will be too concerned with the hours of box ticking they must comply with in most situations now. 17 Uniforms, equipment and vehicles unfit for purpose. Management not trust worthy, huge cover your back culture, no courses on offer for younger members and no promotion unless your incompetent and have pull. 18 management getting away with things I would have lost my job over. Sgts being promoted who have zero people skills and have a serious lack.of knowledge as to what their role is in the job. 19 Insufficient resources to allow for lateral movement within organisation 20 Supervisory roles ie sergeant, not competent enough to run efficient units. 21 The current roster is destroying my sleep patterns. Is has to be changed 22 Poor handling of stressful situations for members. Very poor support. Management are not managers. They are interested in the next step on the promotional ladder and local workforce is down on their list of priorities. Statistics matter more than crime or force management 23 roster at the moment is cat. 24 AGS image being damaged by Garda management they don't care about the rank & file members or the public. It's all about their own promotions 25 Being expected to do more and more everyday for the same pay. Not enough training on new things introduced, eg PEMS 2, no CPD on new legislation introduced, they expect you to know it straight away yourself, they expect members to multitask instead of concerataing on one thing at a time. Taking the word off the public before taking to the member. In the Guards you are Guilty until proven innocent instead of being considered innocent until proven guilty. 26 The organisation is going to implode, serious lack of leadership skills, which are really needed now that the organisation is going through unprecedented flux. Not hopeful for the future 27 Underpaid with no resources. Out of date cars , uniform and work practices. And poor working conditions and prospects 28 Work life balance is an overused buzzword that has no basis in AGS, there appears to be no desire to actually achieve it. 29 Suffering from severe stress due to work. Fear that this could progress to depression which is/would have a negative impact on family life. Very hard to switch off and not worry about work on rest days. The job is becoming more and more stressful which i am finding hard to deal with. Fear of discipline for mistakes made lead to severe stress and it's difficult to approach management with concerns. 30 Very poor communication between members on the ground and senior management. Members hear more from media than senior management. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 60 31 There is still insufficient support to members after traumatic incidents with no time to seek assistance 32 Corrupt throughout. 33 Being expected to perform a number of duties at the one time....no job satisfaction because you are unable to get things done correctly, Being forced to cut corners and tick boxes rather than actually do police work. 34 The lack of resources we have is disgraceful. A third world country would have better equipment. Also our uniform is a complete joke. Why why why are we subjected to wearing basically a suit with a insufficiant stab vest and uncomfortable utility belt. Its laugable how the government are treating us. 35 The job has changed in some ways which are there to tick the boxes and cover higher ups while we,frontline, are left to sort out issues without training or support. The levels of post incident support both in how to close the incident(files ect) or in debriefing/support are sadly lacking. The 24/7 service is a start but way behind what's needed. Mgt want solutions not problems and if you can't give them the solutions in files etc you can become part of the problem 36 Management with lack if leadership skills and believing at everyone at Garda rank are intellectually inferior or to put it another way stupid.. along with not working their full shift and changing shifts to incur overtime.. need I go on. 37 Being treated like a child at times. Management sometimes picking on u for no real reason and making big things out of little things. 38 The absolute lack from those above of understanding of the difficult job we do. As An Garda Siochana is now effectively a business we can no longer consider ourselves public servants. The music has "died" for many of the hardworking and diligent, loyal people in the Organisation. Once we became a business we were on the road downhill. Public service is about treating everyone like we would like to be treated. No longer possible in number crunching eras. 39 No cpd training in update legislation adds to stress levels as my skill set is not improved , courses given are also given by favour of mgmt 40 Most of the issues concerning me come about because of poor outdated equipment, poor managers lacking training and people skills to deal with modern day issues and the amount of nepotism involved in placing unsuitable people in important positions. There seems to be a complete lack of forward planning across the board. 41 Cliques looking after each other. People abusing power when deciding who gets overtime. Loneliness 42 Not sure this survey will make much difference, the hole culture in AGS has to change. Promoting the wrong people just because who they know 43 Dealing with so much work that is not garda specific. Passport applications and nonsense calls that command and control send us to 44 n/a 45 I feel morale is extremely low although has improved slightly with increased recruiting. We as Gardai are highly undervalued by management and seem to only get criticism for any thing management judge as an infraction. Huge issues with favouritism and jobs being filled with no competition being held. Too many changes and no remuneration for said changes and too much expected of the regular to accomplish while vastly under resourced. I honestly could not recommend this job to any young person. 46 "Lack of adequate equipment, training to do the job effectively. Management have no interest in solving / preventing crime or public order issues, management only interested in massaging crime figures, balancing budgets for the betterment of their own further promotion. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 61 Promotion/specialised units is who you know not what you know. Management lack frontline policing experience and no clue what members on the regular deal with. Regular unit treat like [ ] and the last to be resourced, even.." 47 I currently have to wear [ ] Shirts that are 10 years old because the shirts supplied by [ ] have never and will never fit. I brought them to be altered and they couldn't even solve it. they are way oversized and of exceptionally poor quality as is the uniform in general. Completely not fit for purpose yet all we hear is that we must look professional... Our uniform is an absolute disgrace and an insult to have to put it on everyday. I outlined this to [ ] on her station visit. 48 Bullying seems to be a big issue in office environments and lack of IT investment. Operating on Windows 7 and now XP, slow and lagging PC software. Lack of general investment in IT infrastructure. 49 Lack of proper training and equipment as well as follow up support or continuous training 50 Senior management ticking boxes for promotional gain. Too much political influence still frtom govt to senior management. Our leaders needs to be able to run the job without concern of promotion or keeping politicians happy. Go back to being good police... which a lit of them are.. 51 No time allocated to exercise for a job that demands both fitness and physical strenght 52 Civilianisation is having a major impact on my position. This change was put forward 9 years ago and no meaningful progress has been made. Integration with civilians has not been thought out and nobody seems to have an idea how to deal with it. My carrier path or any opportunity for promotion is non-existent which is having a negative impact on my earnings and future pension entitlements. Civilians continue to get promotion opportunity after opportunity. Inquality is alive in AGS 53 Management have no respect or regard for the work Garda rank do. We are constantly dismissed. Being a woman makes this even harder as comments are constantly made about my gender. A boys club operates and it is more open than ever. We are ridiculed behind our backs for having family commitments but similar comments are not made about males. This affects how I do my job and I know promotion will not happen for me because of my gender. 54 Too much time on audits and accounting for matters long past ie jlos, unserved summons. Organisation has become too inward looking 55 Personally I am doing the work of a few people as the standard of civilian staff leaves a lot to be desired. My work load is tripled down to incompetent civilians. Management refuse to address the issue as they feel they have no backing from upper management. What's worrying is that the job want civilians doing jobs that guards are currently doing?? Laughable! 56 Lack of appropriate staff levels 57 work place bullying is at its worst fearfull everyday in my current role amd had to attend counselling to deal with it. fear of reprisals is why i havent formally reported it 58 The disgusting practices of appointments within districts. Absolutely no system of reward for years of service in district, commitment to role (excellent sick records) , epw work done in past or fitness to fulfil particular roles. 59 Equipment, uniform, vehicles not up to standard. 60 I suffer from [ ] which is caused by stress, this I believe is due to my work. I nearly died in [ ] because of this. No body in work cared. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 62 61 Removing senior experienced members from the regular leaving a very junior members. Which means your losing local knowledge, experience etc 62 The main issue I have is the lack of investment in the job. Outdated equipment, and inadequate cars. Also very poor senior management who cannot do their job. Only there because of nepotism. Very demorilising. I love my job but I hate the organisation. Senior management structure needs to be stripped, civilians to go in where ever they can. Completely civilianise the promotion boards. Only way to get rid of nepotism. Do that and the job might have a chance. 63 the contributing factor that effects me is the severe increase in workload, less manpower to do it, no support from senior management except criticism leading to severe stress amongst all staff. 64 Far too many people employed in clerical duties leaving units on the front line depleted. No consequences for criminals, most of our work is a complete waste of time. Management won't employ court presenters on Saturdays & bank holidays meaning members having to go to court the next morning after nights without adequate rest. They'll probably do something to change it when someone crashes the car on the way home through exhaustion. 65 Lack of adequate supervision 66 Job is now totally reactive and not very pro active. Only implement changes when public outcry demands it. No input from Garda members ever taken on board or implemented despite token requests from management for same. Management always know what’s best and guards just have to follow directions and any new procedures despite any concerns as to how practical or effective they will be. 67 Paperwork puts huge stress on members. No legislation or court refreshers. Bullying. Favouritism for courses, promotion, overtime. Under staffed and management not highlighting this. Not listening to members requests. Ridiculous policing plans targeting decent people over traffic etc... While criminals openly sell drugs steal assault. No prospects for members who are unappy in job leading to depression. There is a place for every member in job but nobody cares to help them find their dream job 68 Job needs to change. No respect for seniority. Nepotism and cronyism still exist. Cliques as strong as ever 69 lack of Sergeants on units 70 I feel under complete stess all the time in work due to workload and constantly having to double guess myself. Always wondering and waiting to be caught out by highter authorities. This job has effected my life, family life, I'm on sleeping tablets for years which don't help me most nights. It's all the pressure I face in work. I never go sick but some days I physically can't lift my head off the table with lack of sleep. The stress of this job is going to take lives. Be warned. 71 I was bullied in work several years ago at a different station to the point of being suicidal. When I finally cracked and said it, my first day back to work I got a bollocking and then directions came down that I was to see [ ] but it never materialized, no will to follow up on member's welfare. 72 Lack of manpower. 73 "Job has lost direction in terms of what they want. detection of crime not important. working in rurarl station and unable to change shifts to meet local community needs to the detriment of the job" 74 Weighed down by adminstration work and box ticking. No recognition for good results or no rewards or benefits for doing good police work. It has become the less you do the better off you are. No management had ever come back to a member after a court case is completed and reward them for the hard work. It's stats game now GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 63 75 I am constantly stressed because of this job. I have suffered severe sleep problems especially over the last few years. The amount of changes that we are expected to keep up to date with while trying to do our daily duties is overwhelming and I am constantly battling anxiety because of this job. If I have could go back in time I definitely would have chosen a different career path 76 Lack of basic training and communication. Promotion not on merit. 77 Severe lack of relevant training for the particular job we do 78 Totally unfair system of promotion and development in the job. Unless you have a relative or have a sponsor you ain't going anywhere. Restricts career progression and allows incompetent candidates progress to roles that thy are unable or unsuitable for. The job also fails to identify skills of members acquired prior to joining the job and utilize them efficiently to improve the service and develop other members. Others allowed to languish too long in roles without attempting career progression 79 The job worries about numbers figures and arse covering. If you make a mistake you get burnt and hung out to dry. If I make a mistake or go for a different position I'm clearly over looked due to someone who has family and contacts within he job. Here is a clear u fairness and lack of transparency 80 I have considered resigning but I don't know what other job I could do 81 Too much pass the book landing on the guard on the regular! Too much paper to properly investigate complaints and incidents 82 Serious illness in the last 12 months and concerned that my position may be changed in the future and I would be unable to do it or be accommodated. 83 Nepotism is the single biggest issue in an Garda Siochana, if you are not connected you will never progress no matter how good or how hard you work. Low morale and apathy abound as a consequence. Competent persons refuse to apply for positions they would be excellent in as they know full well that almost all promotions and positions are decided before the competition is announced. It's the only occasion when Garda interviews are not recorded. 84 Poor first line supervisors 85 Welfare and mental health issues ignored for my whole career. Only one person doing the job of management, welfare and GRA and he is a private citizen [ ]. I know several members who would be dead now if not for this private citizen working voluntarily for members. What's more shocking the fact that he does more than anyone else or the fact that everyone else ignores him and does nothing for us!! 86 "We are under paid and get no thanks for the job that we do! Overtime are cut in the [] and very poor management. Equipment very poor for the job we do." 87 Massive increase of workload since garda numbers were reduced and have not been replaced. Files still required for minor incidents when not required in other divisions. Lack of time to complete investigations. Increase workload at public office due to other stations not open. Pulse not garda user friendly ie schedules charge sheets tracking forms should all populate from pulse incident. Cad outdated. Garda vehicles not fit for purpose. 88 Senior supervisors should spend at least 2/3 days/nights on patrol observing calls that frontline officers deal with, the amount of information that is obtained in the first instance, the creation of the incident (which can take up to an hour at times pending on GISC availability) and the constant duplication of information contained on the Pulse system. It appears that no matter how much information that is contained therein that a paper trail follows. This has to change so members can do job!! GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 64 89 Feeling so overwelmed by the workload, stress and guilt from perhaps being unable to fulfill my duties for what i signed up for in the job. So disillusioned and frustrated and feel management dont understand what guards have to put up with on the ground, from public etc. 90 Lack of transport 91 Division of labour, regular unit seriouslyover worked, responds to majority of calls and has to investigate serious incidents without any assistance. 92 Bullying is a huge problem in the job 93 The roster is ridiculous 94 Such poor equality in the service. Some do a lot less than others and there is no accountability. 95 I pretty much give up on the job 96 "Regular units not properly looked after by upper management,very demoralising. Simple things like proper transport, suitable uniform, etc are just put on the long finger by management when they are necessary for front line workers." 97 The welfare system within the organisation has to be radically overhauled and be more proactive towards members. Regular psychological evaluation should be mandatory and not something that is a half hearted attempt to close the stable door when the horse has bolted. I suffer with PTSD and I had to see a work psychiatrist to be evaluated as to whether my condition is work related recently only for pay purposes. And it's still not sorted. Almost [ ] weeks later. Disgraceful. 98 The organisation is bad for your mental health. Management have total disregard for the needs of members, from in-line supervisor to district officers. Exceptionally poor facilities, unsafe work environment, equipment that hinders effectiveness in role. Complete and utter disregard for the men and women actually “policing" the State. Pitiful organisation and failing at every level, both the public and the organisation. A huge amount of members considering resignation as a result. 99 Feel we are not sufficiently trained for the tasks we face lack of first aid training is disgraceful. 100 No consistency with allocation of courses. Same people getting all the courses and only doing them for the sub allowance rather than the ability to use the new skillset. No career advancement opportunities. Management have never once asked me what I would like to do in the job or have I any skills that could be utilized better. 101 Spending long hours in traffic as job is located in Dublin city center with no flexibility to start/finish time 102 Members are not being allowed to train during rest period frown upon by management if not available for calls during meal breaks no adequate cover on breaks 103 Constant harassment by management over work done rather than support. Over emphasis by mamagement on minor issues leading to a constant fear of displine rather than focusing on major issues. Complete disregard by mamagement of local communitys and the role a garda plays they more concerned with the numbers. Lack of support from management but they still expect members to go wxtra mile for no recompense and use iwn time and equipment. Always looked at as wrong/guilty corrupt without evidence. RIP 104 Management have priorities all wrong. Figures in a pie chart doesn't reflect the job that's being done on ground level. Regular core workers are treated badly. Some levels in the job believe regular core workers are good for nothing and don't realise the job won't survive without them. Constantly replying to same paperwork is frustrating. Management are too scared to close cases. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 65 105 Being supervised by the most incompetent and inept individuals 106 Senior Ranks uneducated in relation to Specialise roles and the constant change in management means your constantly having to educate them and fight to do your job correctly! 107 It is so frustrating, we hear so much about change, but that's all. It's all talk and very little action. The only changes being made are ones that affect frontline personnel with more scrutiny, accountability and pressure. Those of us on the ground want to be part of a progressive, modern, professional and effective police force with proper training and equipment (including efficient IT and transport) but no one seems to listen or want to invest in our organisation properly. 108 Work loads exceeds time given to investigate to full potential causing room for discipline, complaints. Management too focused on mit checkpoints and ticking box exercises. Lack of members is becoming a health and safety issue. Showing initiative and wanting to progress in job is discouraged. More training needed. Job becoming mentally draining due to morale and lack of support 109 The stress and lack of support in the job has caused me to go into bouts of serious depression 110 I have almost ten years service. My career has not ended up as expected. I have been constantly overlooked for positions and promotions by people less capable than me. It leaves me feeling lost, disillusioned and useless. 111 I just cannot believe how awful the job has become. Moral is so incredibly low. People are so so stressed out. It's very very sad and management do not seem to care one bit. I can see more resignations and perhaps worse than that as people are so badly affected by this job 112 Lack of ongoing training - in 25 years of service I have never had a single update on legislation or further non-specific training (ie i have done driving courses etc but am hopelessly out of date with the tools to do the general Garda job). Could not go back to a station or go for promotion now, even if I wanted to. 113 Raising any of the issues on the survey feels like it will result in dismissal or reprisal. 114 Having to report by report on something that is clearly on the computer but management too lazy to read it. Traffic light system and PAF is not user friendly and if PAF administrator and superintendent actually had to use this system operationally they would see that half your time is spent updating incidents. Wastes so much time. Comments by PAF can be condescending and not what system was designed for. 115 Station facilities appallingly bad. No hot water or messing facilities. Wind howling through windows. Only one radiator working. Submitted report in [> 5 years ago] and no feedback on whether any works will be carried out. 116 Management not interested in members well being 117 Poor,outdated,unpractical uniform. Awful “clique" mentality - nepotism. Lack of resources. Unsuitable vehicles. No fairness/equality when giving out courses. No respect for seniority from management. Management thinking they have the right to frighten/bully. The amount of grief we take internally. 118 If you attend a horrific incident the job only cares about the investigation. Management pretend to care about the staff (box ticking care) peer support structures are not sufficient and management check on you once if you're lucky and never again 119 Inadequate vehicles for what we're expected to do. 120 Very poor support for gardai with PTSD mental health conditions from Garda Management. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 66 121 "The main issue is the nature of the job where certain people are looked after over others. Here people get anything they want then get promoted easier than the other people working and doing there bit. System Is very unfair and does not reward people that do the most work. Another issue is with people who have kids and the fact that the job still expect you to give everything to the job. Affects family life. Been forced to do overtime and attend court which causes stress for child care." 122 PALF is a joke designed by a person with no policing experience. The language used in it is pure nonsense. I have seen some rubbish come down the line in my years but this is in its own league. Crap cars Crap uniform. [ ] of selecting the uniform. We need tasers. We dod not need to be told that money is tight for training as there is no training happening. CPR Self defense New Legislation - no training. Putting it on a HQ circular and emailing it is a cop out. Pay Parity will bec 123 The job is being run like a business but so badly it would be bankrupt after a year. Gardai are seen as very insignificant tools used and misused by management to favour their own promotion prospects with no thought of the consequences. Every 2nd garda has either a mental health issue , weight problem or personal and family problems due in no small way to the job and the stresses , shift work and treatment while working from both the public/ management . No focus on continuous health/fitness 124 I have 33 years in ages and the supervisors and management is a complete joke, arrogant, incompetent, greedy, self promoting and utterly unfit for purpose, I regularly hear judges comment that the guards are hung out to dry again, this emanates from our managers, need I say anymore, I am retiring because of what I just said 125 Promotion... unless you are in an office or a specialised unit forget about it. The job keeps to send out these three words fairness, equity and transparency, to me they are the three most disingenuous words in this job. 126 Rules are not equal for everyone. Lack of co ordination in how members get courses etc. Favouritism 127 I am under an extreme amount of work related pressure that is impacting my personal life, I feel I am not appreciated in my role or supporter by my supervisors, I love my job and couldn't see myself doing anything else, however, we are not adequately trained or equipped, the lack of resources in stations is shocking. Management seem to spend more time trying to find ways to discipline members than anything else. I have been to several serious incidents and have been injured on duty, no support 128 Recieved credible threat to safety amd never listened to. All about networking the job is completly corrupt and bull divide and concour. Willing to whistleblow and job will end career. 129 I returned from maternity leave suffering from Post Natal Depression and was on meds, however, I did not feel that I could inform management about this. I contacted welfare and was told I had a duty to inform them to protect my colleagues, however, no mention of how it affected me. I was also informed by [ ] that I may be put in the station pending a [ ] visit. This was very stressful. I am now off my meds and finished counselling. Large number of probationers very stressful. 130 Complete lack of modern IT infrastructure system which is user friendly and relevant to frontline workers, where frontline workers have an active input into its design. Lack of regular continuous professional development courses. No consideration by Garda Management of all ranks, to assist members who are retiring and providing them with a training course so the member can follow their interest.. 131 I am attached to a community policing unit. I feel completely undervalued by my colleagues with in the station and our unit is constantly the being mocked. [ ] My management doesn't understand my role and what I am supposed to do and I am not given the appropriate information about the investigations and left out of the loop. Management promotes their own and they don't care about those not in the “inner circle" I wake up at night panicking & getting help for [sic] GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 67 132 I think that if management managed better with regard to minding people and following up when people are out on stress/ sick/ iod etc then it would be a huge benefactor to healing and getting back to work sooner. People feel very let down by what they see as no one caring about them when we're badly injured or witnessed a very bad / traumatic incident. 133 Nods, winks and phone calls for promotion. Ability and work return count for nothing. Incompetent supervisors and management with no interpersonal skills as a result. Morale on the floor. 134 Failure of the organisation to provide any training to members working with/ team leaders of civilians. No proper rank structure when working with/ supervising civilians. 135 Cramped working conditions in [] ..and uncertainty about move from [] ..no adequate rest / kitchen facilities.. 136 Morale is the lowest I've seen in 15 years, I have only 15 years service 137 Low morale in station due to changing units because of 1-2 individuals. Instead of dealing with the situation everyone was effected by general movement. Unnecessary when unit worked well together. 138 Management completely removed from the members on the ground. Members often used as pawns to aid the promotion prospects of management. No consideration of the effect these sudden and unexplained changes have on members and their private lives/ families. Technology is laughable, no taser, no body cams, pulse is majorly flawed. Body cams would help exonerate members from vexatious complaints. Uniform not fit for purpose. Patrol cars not fit for purpose and dangerous. Stations not fit for purpose 139 Unless you're well connected forget about advancing in this job in this division. It's all about who you know and you will rarely, if ever, be listened to and unfortunately this survey is not going to change any of that. 140 Simple tools to do the job such as a laptop to play cctv is a luxury and not readily available. Poor vehicles. All vehicles in my office are over 11 years old. The job needs modernization but we need simple modern tools to enable members to efficiently police first and foremost 141 No proper structured breaks, eating on the go, no proper kitchen facilities, not been given time to train or workout, members driving long distances to work, I'm 90mins each way 142 Lack of vehicles, having to work with incompetent colleagues who have no ability to deal with the public. 143 I believe the GRA are there to facilitate management more so then it's members. very stressful when you believe that about your rep body. 144 Members off sick, [ ] and the organization should be stronger in dealing with each individual case. Those that do some work (right) are getting overloaded. 145 Having a sgt that is covering [X number of] units. It has impacted my work in a negative way. I do not believe any direct supervisor should be covering [X number of] units and work from a different location. It creates inconsistencies and gaps in leadership and in accessing assistance from your supervisor. 146 Being in sick leave and being forgotten about 147 Poor management is the biggest problem of all. It's not a lack of supervision, it's the quality of it. Too many ulterior motives among managers. 148 Lack of training in new developments and refresher courses lack of new equipment to do job efficiently 149 Feeling that you have to account for everything you do and often feeling that that is more important that serving the community 150 Nepotism is rife in the job. Promoting the lads has not gone away at all. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 68 151 Lack of sufficent equipment, ie, cars, also poor quality uniform that is not fit for purpose. Lack of gardai in the district. 152 I genuinely feel so little valued in my job. Media constantly slating us. Management only care about tickets, victim engagement tabs on pulse & collator entries. Crime doesn't matter to them. Solving it doesn't matter especially if overtime is involved. Dreading the rest of my service. Higher management need to get out of their offices and see what real policing is. 153 The most thing I find frustrating lately is the amount of 9-5 office jobs created for members who do not want to do core hours. 154 [ ] I have examples of majority of issues mentioned, on a personal level. Contact me if needed. 155 Accountability is passed down the chain of command to sergeants and Gardai 156 Severe shortage of cars 157 "Lack of training, completely under resourced as regards numbers, equipment and, Vehicles and accommodation. It's a race to the bottom. Always told, well [] manages" 158 The sense of teamwork is gone from the job. It's now about get work done and try get a 9-5 week day job. No one supports each other anymore 159 I'm on [sick leave] as a result of an injury on duty leading to [ ] for [ ] months. have already been told by trusted colleagues that others - in particular a number of sergeants including my own - are commenting that i'm 'taking the piss' and that my career 'will be [ ] in the patrol car'. when confronted that it cannot be done same sergeant commented 'he won't be caught that way but he will be caught for doing this.' now my career is ruined because of ignorance towards my illness. 160 Stuck in front of pulse ticking boxes rather than doing what I joined the job for 161 Remuneration- we have been SCREWED by the public service pensions report! Fast accrual pension and we have signed up to a permanent pension levy. I believe this was a pre determined outcome of the report as a direct result of gra industrial action. The%of members who can retire after 30 yrs will have to drop for current members who a) must work to 55 b) will not take up new employment after retiring because of the % of pension payments by social welfare. It is no longer a fast accrual pension. 162 Management do not care about the garda on the ground. Garda is only good as last mistake. No training in areas of importance. I.e first aid.. the basic of basic. One rule for one and one rule for another.. only overtime in Dublin rest of country fighting over scraps.. the job is all about stats. . Management don't stand up and protect there force.. discipline is inconsistent country wide.. thanks regards a garda that has never got disciplined that just goes out and does job day after day. 163 I recently was out of work for [ ] months due to anxiety & stress. I had suffered a bereavement but I had also not kept the job I was in for [ ] years & felt extremely underappreciated within the organisation. There was absolutely no communication from my Superintendent during this time which in total spanned [ ] mths. I have to say 2017 was the worst year i have ever had in AGS to such an extent that I considered resigning. Support is lacking & therefore morale is crap. 164 Bewildered 165 Pay, Pulse, Paperwork, P.A.L.F GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 69 166 My own opinion is that, Management are suffocating members with additional and work practice changes yet zero training, only a portal update to read “when you can" !! Change is hard in such a big organization but ramming changes to please our many oversight bodies is not working. Members are stressed over traffic light systems and endless paperwork. Policing is about helping the community now helping stats via Garda Inspectorate/Policing Authority/GSOC/Garda Management etc 167 Poor training and expectations. Like being given a plane, told to fly it with no training....with your hands tied behind your back. 168 Nothing will change without investment ie money being put into training and a complete overhaul of IT systems. And thats just the basics. Also transparent and fair procedures for promotions/placements/appointments. Acknowledgement by management for 'a job well done' does not exist. Its just a line through a job thats been done and on to the next one. Correspondence is always coming from a negative ie wheres this why isnt this done, as opposed to a positive ie file received professionally done. 169 Real policing isn't considered important anymore, all management want is numbers on Pulse eg negative intelligence (car not there) and proactive policing incidents. Crazy. 170 A clear sense that current top management are damaging the force reputation by only caring about matters that affect their promotional prospects or please local politicians or community leaders. 171 Management are paper pushing , don't care about the Guards on the front line , only care about promotion and try to get lads in trouble instead of helping them , cut-throat environment , and goes down to the sergeants who only care about them selves , very much a situation of only caring about themselves and covering there arses , the job is gone to pot and if been happier in tescos stocking shelves , worst decision of my life joining this joke of an organisation 172 Feeling over-whelmed to an extreme point with no sign of help. Afraid to say so due to what [ ] might do to me and my role. Weight problems due to this caused by over eating. Constant feeling of bullying from management whereby I am constantly set aside and given less favorable treatment even though my work is on par if not higher than most. 173 I feel that there is a real lack of understanding of mental health issues within the organisation. I have suffered from depression and PTSD as a result of having been involved in numerous incidents where I was the first responder to fatal accidents and sucides. The job has only lately brought in counselling services. It should be mandatory to get counselling if you are the first responder to incidents involving fatal RTA and traumatic incidents. 174 Organisation is a joke. Ashamed to be part of it now. Most, at every level, don't actually know how to do their job, even the basics. Most don't even want to know. The "job" is carried by about 10 percent of the work force. At my age and service I just plod along until the day I can get out. 175 Gardaí- go to traumatic incidents everyday and receive no critical incident debriefing which I feel is badly needed 176 Subsistence being refused 177 Bullying is rife in this organisation. Senior management are aware and bury their heads in the sand or bury it completely. This leads to more stress for members. Middle management are inept. Incompetent and in some cases dangerous !! Reported this and provided details. It was ignored. []. 178 Not appreciated by senior Management, under valued and taken for granted and very little empathy towards our well being. Uniform is totally unfit for purpose. Regular unit so under resourced it's dangerous. Morale at Garda rank is at rock bottom and no sign of improvement. Garda rank is so disillusioned and our biggest concern is trying to stay out of trouble with senior Management. There is a feeling perception that we have no backing from senior Management. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 70 179 Lack of restroom, inadequate eating/refreshment facilities/inadequate equipment for soc work/refusal of leave due to lack of trained members/communication problem with line manager. 180 Training and proper and minimum equipment not provided 181 What purpose of this survey...in my district division as is the fact countrywide the GRA and our representatives have enabled this negative unworkable changes due to their silence and no offer no support to members who try to flag issues...all members fully aware they have no support when they raise their heads to criticise r stand up 4 themselves and the resultant victimisation from management 182 Lack of parking in work is a constant problem and causes huge stress. 183 100% rosters need to change. 184 As a result of work supervisor issues management would rather move the complainant rather than move the problem or even take to address the problem 185 Fatals, Suicides, deaths 186 Too much pressure on Gardai to tick all the boxes rather than deal with an incident. God now chowing category for an incident. 187 "Pressure of the job Media slating us every day of the week No one in senior management standing up for us" 188 As I am community policing feel as tho supervisors have no interest in the unit. New supervisors only interest in arrests and charges etc and only seeing that as a work return and not the community engagement performed by community policing 189 There is little to no support after serious incidents. i have been suffering from depression and no assistance was given 190 In relation to illness, I feel management don't understand the physical mental and emotional challenges a member faces while maintaining their position within the job as a productive member, the “human side" of things has gone and now it's down to “every man for himself" 191 No social and family life as a result of unsociable work hours 192 "1. Too many guards in offices not doing police work resulting in front line workers being overloaded quickly and persistently with investigations. 2. Senior management too occupied with appearing in local media papers feeding information that gives a false positive on stats. 3. Senior Management not making decisions while the guard on the ground has to make decisions everyday and without hesitation. Easy to be critical or comment on why a decision was made after the fact." 193 There are no Police men/women running our Police Force. It's run by people who think they know what they're doing by reading a book on it with zero real experience. A Police Force is not a fortune 500 company and shouldn't be run like one. We, the rank and file never ever ever have anyone from authority speak up for us or back us up in this ever increasing, almost daily, trial by Social Media. Nobody has our back which leads to the "blue wall of silence" us against the world mentality. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 71 194 Our job is a waste of time. You work really hard and do your job competently only to see some clown with half your ability get promoted because he either has "pull" (nepotism) or else he just appeases management. Nobody gets anything on merit 195 Insufficient time or resources to deal with incidents and lack of support to help get major investigations or tasks done. One individual left to deal with somthing that a number of people should be dealing with. 196 Far too much paperwork. Lack of equipment, poor quality equipment. Chronic Nepotism. Outdated computer systems. No technology in patrol cars. Lack of Patrol cars. Poor quality patrol cars. Severe lack of training. Lack of Sergeants/supervisors on the street. Box ticking procedures, the blame culture that exists amongst management & ass covering! 197 Problems not with my line manager but further up the line 198 There is far too much jobs being taken up by people under qualified for the roles they are doing. Also there is too much reaction by management to manage crime figures rather than tackling real problems. They are very much results driven as opposed to turroe process 199 The most negatively structured questionnaire I have ever undertaken 200 Lack of acknowledgement of a job well done. Severe punishments for mistakes. Lack of response when I ask a question but response demanded when I am asked a question 201 Lack of promotion 202 Not being valued for the role I do, not feeling that promotion is available to me when I have a wealth of experience in the job and see rampant nepotism all around me. Frustrating. 203 We need proper uniforms are current ones are demoralising 204 Senior management are not willing or interested in hearing of problems and issues from the lowest ranks for fear of impacting on their own performance appraisal and opinion. 205 Senior members being seriously left out of the loop not just me personally but nearly all Pre their retirement which I believed forced their untimely retirement. Feeling it was best to go rather than made feel in the way . Given menial tasks , undermined not giving jobs becoming of your experience and ability all of a sudden you are made feel like dead wood . Effects not only your well-being but your pocket as the same applies to overtime etc. you get a few crumbs do as to avoid a complaint 206 Bad management for the past [ ] years in my district, thankfully [ ] has moved on. The district has improved massively. 207 Every tour I have to spend approx one hours dealing with email. I have given up engaging with PAF. It is counter productive when my work lod builds up. To do file I must work on rest days. Everything now is PC based. We have [ ] pcs in an office of [ ] people who work same tours. The level of work is continuously overwhelming, we get no support from senior management we have had two cars taken from our unit and are left with one. We find it increasingly difficult to operate. This causes stress. 208 Facilities available. Ie: desk and computer sharing, no office space, shower and changing facilities out dated. 209 In my station (and the wider force) morale is non existent. We get no support or appreciation from management. They don't care about how busy we are or the pressure that we are under. Our resources are shocking and gardai on regular units are burnt out due to their workload. However management (inspector level and above) wouldn't even thank us for the work we do. 210 Annual leave not being granted in some instances due to insufficient staff working but if it suits the job its fine... GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 72 211 Guards have now become full time administrators due to box ticking paper working and covering yourself twice and three times over in everything you do. As a result there is now little or no time for any real on the ground policing. 212 irregular hours detrimental to family life. 213 Definitely the lack of opportunities within the organisation. Witnessing people receive "temporary" positions with nothing temporary about them. Also the lack of driving courses, we're not supposed to drive using lights and sirens on cpd1 but do because you might be the only available mobile. It's completely fine until it goes wrong and then you're being investigated for it. 214 The so called work/life balance is on paper only. Organisation does not care of effect on family life. 215 I am currently off sick with anxiety and depression, communication has been limited, sorting out pay when off is a nightmare, I was not listened to when I tried to express my issues, work just piled on and I was made feel like a whinger. While work is not all to blame for my mental health problems, it certainly didn't help. 216 Bad pay, extra workload, unnecessary paperwork, paperwork duplication are major problems 217 The job is a load of [ ], pure nepotism and punished by superiors for challenging them. No clear guidance, [ ] uniform and even worse vehicles. Piss poor stations, no computers. [ ] pay. Hated by the public, always at risk for low pay. Management only mad to punish you to further their career. 218 Equipment huge issues 219 Very little supervision as supervisors seem desk bound now with the new changes. 220 There is a complete lack of interaction between management and front line. Nothing is reviewed as to how members in the front line deal with incidents be it lack of resources, issues with reporting, issues with access to information at relevant times and specific members not performing 221 It's very difficult to maintain a positive frame of mind when you observe gardai given a new role despite not workinh as hard as you in your opinion, without any competition held. Many gardai given preferential treatment for a number of reasons from relatives in senior management to having a closer bond with a line manager. This is rampant in my station and hugely demoralizing to such an extent that it has had consequences on my private life 222 Job is under resourced in terms of personnel, equipment and basic needs. Supervisory staff in general are incompetent and undertrained. Unable to effectively lead or manage. No voice for frontline members to direct change or give views on day to day work issues. Morale at all time low. Current situation exists from years of nepotism. No transparency up and down through the ranks, inner circles exist within each station excluding most frontline members outside of managements 'chosen few' 223 Is this another waste of time? What value and directions will our 'leaders' take from this? Will this survey be hidden away in the "Carlsberg Complaints Office" with all the other unanimous Conference Motions that the 'Grand Old Duke of Phibsboro' and his followers have traditionally ignored? I will not be holding my breath for a change in mind sets or attitudes by the so called leaders in this organisation. GRMA. 224 Out on Long term sick as a result of injury on duty and management don't care. Absolutely no duty of care for members. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 73 225 We are meant to be investigators on one hand. Administration officer recording and gathering data on the other but hey guess what? We are operating like a fire brigade too dealing with every thing that comes our way also on top of that. A solicitor has clerical staff. A blocklayer has labourers and a Garda has just himself and boss writes to him from an ivory tower stating.....please explain. It's the final straw that breaks the camels back and the straws are piling up and up GRA. 226 Severe lack of man power on the regular. Must be looked at 227 Nepotism is rife in the higher ranks. Good hard working garda denied opportunities because they question policies and procedures 228 Management refuse to consult operational staff on the ground when formulating changes in practice or equipment - despite those on the ground people having the necessary experience to make the best choices. Bad managerial planning and research lead to stress and operational problems on the ground. 229 Trying to get leave because unit numbers are low is annoying. 230 Officers need more trainin g and resources and be appriciated more for what we do.. fairer promotion system needed also 231 Lack of training, resources and management. 232 Poor quality equipment for example vehicle not fit for purpose 233 Wanting to appear "accountable" has led to management not allowing genuine human error or mistakes. 234 Over reliance by management on pulse...poor equipment, resources and vehicles which are unfit for purpose 235 Nepotism is rife in AGS. Great if you have good connections through family etc. but very frustrating to work harder and better than colleagues who get selected for positions that will further their career based on who they know and get nothing. There are way too many "buckshe" (unofficial) appointments which are designated by the superintendents without a competition. This is unfair on both those members as their position can be revoked at any time, and also to members who wanted the position. 236 Constantly being told I cannot get a course because I have a transfer in but cannot get a transfer because we are understaffed so now I'm [ ] years with a transfer in and no courses under my belt, what Chief would want me?? 237 Lack of obligatory counselling for traumatic events encountered. 238 Management are detached from reality. They are more interested in be seen to be making arrested rather than properly investigating case. Rushing investigations so they can say a person has been arrest to keep the politians happy 239 GRA as a union do not do enough for their members within An Garda Siochana and I'm starting to wonder why I am contributing to this union as they seem to be of no benefit to its members 240 Training is lacking in all areas 241 Lack of courses in order to efficiently do the job GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 74 242 Shift work, members abusing time management and not working full hours. Management encouraging bad work practices. Management not encouraging the workers. Everyone watching everyone elaes work load and trying to avoid work. No back up when in trouble. Management more worried about a prisoner than a garda. Garda welfare on theory but not in practice. Injury on duty cost a fortune as state do not pay your bills. Courts more on side of accused than garda. Little positive feed back from public 243 No training or proper equipment makes me feel demoralized and is very stressful 244 This organisation has such a long way to go. And putting together a survey that does not allow members to elaborate on why they are selecting a certain bullet point as an answer only adds weight to that. 245 Since initial training, no updated self defence or refreshment training. No law update training. No tuition in new legislation. Plenty of legislation re prisoners rights, very little regard for human rights of Garda members. Treated like criminals by GSOC for doing our job. Frustrated by kid gloves of courts undermining the hard work of Gardai. There should be mandatory independent counseling for those involved in incidents involving firearms, or severe violence. 246 No proper rest periods. Even when you get a break and someone knocks on the door, you have to stop eating and answer. Going to calls on your own, no care about members safety. Lack of care when injured on duty. No update on the incident, lack of investigation. 247 Female colleagues constantly & consistently being given 'handy' jobs, most of which are not advertised. 248 as a parent a mother a female and getting older , dont see any help flexability give when kids are small ie ages 0 to 5 and dont think its 100 per cent idea of women in their 50s to be on public order patrol 249 There is constant pressure to 'keep the bosses happy'. If there's an issue impacting you, it's always: 'Better to keep your head down.' Also, the treatment of people on light duties by certain senior ranks is appalling, e.g. threats of transfer if you don't comply. Wanting 'able -bodied' people - despite your dedication and hard work at recovery to ensure you are at work. GardaÃÂ- are not just about the physical. Injured members working on light duties, still have brain-power. 250 I am a Clerk but have no medical conditions to prevent full duty. Penalised for taking office job when applying for courses which I hope to use in near future as I hope to get promoted or transfer out of office. Why punish office bound members who have an interest outside of the office? 251 Sick leave regulations. 252 Injured on duty, trying to return to work and management will not sanction leave for childcare until I have a return to work in terview but no sign of when that will be. Stress levels now through the roof and feeling physical [ ] pain as a result. Expected in work and none at home to care for children, disgraceful, I'm only a number to them. 253 Lack of Basic Back Office support such as typing and stationary provision is also adding pressure 254 The main issue that I find brings the job down is the corrupt and incestuous promotion system. It is a joke. 255 Constantly doing tasks that do not concern the job that you're supposed to be tasked to do. 256 A proper working uniform and PPE would be a really great place to start. Its importance should not be underestimated. 257 Nothing further GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 75 258 The negative stuff about the Gardai in the media that never seems to end has led to low morale and nearly everyone takes the attitude now that the more you do the more trouble you"re leaving yourself open to. Sad. I have 3 teenagers and t years ago I would have been proud of anyone of them wanting to join the Gardai- today I would tell them to run a mile. God help the new recruits.I have [>5] years left and can't wait to go- again something that I would never have thought 5 years ago- rant over 259 It is very disheartening to hear AGS being slated in the media and no one is giving the AGS side of the story. Sometimes it is exhausting trying to defend an organisation that doesn't seem to defend itself in the public eye. 260 A lack of understanding of the job we do, with lack of resources, by management, who then regularly fail to acknowledge the great work that is being done. However if a mistake is made it is recognised immediately!!! It is very disheartening!!!!!!!!!!! 261 Senior officers making false statements to the public about resources, training funding etc. 262 Management more worried about politics/ how they are viewed from the outside than the regular Garda on the ground. Total lack of training/development. Poor/no equipment. 263 Resources are limited and the promotion/branching into different units process is unfair or biased. All management recommended which means that if management within the station dislike you or you have had issues, then your unlikely to be recommended for different things. Too much doubling up on work/paperwork. Its like its designed to place fault with the guard if there is an issue with an investigation. 264 Due to a condition called [ ] I have difficulty sitting, standing, etc without chronic pain. I have requested an appropriate chair [x times]e over the past year and nothing and no answer either. Also in a station with [ ] flights of stairs with no alternative. My working day can be painful. I just have to struggle on and get through best I can. My rest days are spent on the sofa getting ready for the next week instead of enjoying time with [ ]. 265 I do not feel safe carrying out my duties due to manpower issues coupled with inadequate equipment, vehicles and training. 266 I personally feel that the wrong type of persons are promoted. Supervisors & managers should be leaders. this is lacking the last 10 years in the job. Also members continue to do their job while all the bad press is from poor leadership. no rewards for good workers, such as "well done Garda". Cronyism is still rife in AGS. There are the finest of people in AGS, however the majority never get to achieve their full potential due to lack of leadership. Garda station accommodation is disgraceful. 267 Politics is a disgrace within An Garda Síochána. 268 Been pulled left, right and centre to cover areas outside my sub district due to lack of manpower. Not been able to spend enough time in my own area where I should be. 269 Since the change of roster my job has been a major disruption to my family life and I am unhealtier because of it. 270 Only one person per unit in my station. expected to to do the work of a unit with [ ] members. Covering area of over [ ] square kms. always working on your own with lack of equipment and resourses. long ten hours on your own at night time. never asked how you are doing after certain incidents you just get on with it and go to the next one. As a station party we are a close family but on your own it can be a lonely world. You just stay motoring and hope for the best. 271 Extra workload that is put on probationers while out working in stations. work load not spread out enough. all examinations happen within a small time frame. having to complete this work while doing the same work as or members. not being trained to drive, have to depend on other members to bring you to get statements. lack of respect by some members of the public. lack of proper equipment. ie. proper vehicles, P.P.E for daily use. and proper uniform fit for purpose. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 76 272 Lack of sleep and feeling weary, with really only 2 proper night off after working 6 days. 273 Change is needed but for God's sake ask the Gardai on the ground what changes need to be made!! We are a unique occupation and cannot be treated like a private company, private company practices won't work in our occupation!! ASK US WHAT CHANGES NEED TO BE MADE!! We want change and completely support it. Stop asking the pencil pusher yes men who are just looking for the next step on the promotion ladder!!! 274 People on regular policing units do 80% of the work in AGS. Traffic don't take traffic collisions, Detective units only do very small amount of serious crime which causes alot of stress to members on frontline ( regular units). Management know about this and turn a blind eye. Looking forward to outside Commisioner. More members needed on regular units 275 Unable to get transfers and seeing others getting them before you even with welfare grounds. Very poor employee assistance officer in my division. Travelling 2.5 hrs round trip and this is the minimum I've had with 10 years service 276 The organisation is a joke. All management want is to get ahead and they don't care how they do it. Lower ranks have to do what they are told but officer level don't have to. As for nepotism, they job is rife with it. 277 General work load and no support from upper management 278 The job has become mainly a paper moving and statistical exercise. Actually solving crime and helping the community in a real way has become more and more difficult. As long as the computer is right that's all that matters. Our connection with the people we serve is corroding more and more because of the ever increasing admin that front line Gardai are engaged in. 279 The lack of competence and true leadership in the officer ranks of the organisation is the biggest problem we have. 280 Applying for jobs, already knowing who has got the job due to connections. The competency based interviews are totally inadequate when applying for clerical roles within the job. It's not what you know it's who you know environment is still going strong unfortunately. Training is totally inadequate and I don't believe trainers have the necessary skills. Also fearful that all office jobs will be taken by civilians leaving no scope for older female members. Also the civilians do very little work. 281 As a member who formerly worked in specialised area, the lack of counselling was shocking and managements attitude to you seeking assistance to care for your mental health was appalling. The lack of debriefing after suicides/ fatal crashes etc is also appalling. 282 Lack of training is a big concern along with lack of appointments when doing a role for a significant amount of time. Management get acting up allowances for doing a job and management get appointed when in detective roles but gardai are left untrained and doing a job ([ ] years in my situation) without being appoitment and it leaves a very sour taste. Lack of uniform gardai on the frontline. Members are then disciplined for not completing work when workload is huge. It is an out for management. 283 Officers failing to put sufficient resources into investigations in an effort to restrict overtime resulting in poor quality investigations. Gardai are policing re-actively as opposed to proactively. 284 There is no continous professional development provided for the past 7 years despite staff being employed in this area. Too many operational guards chosing clerical work for less stressful life which impacts hugely on operational unit. Lack of experience by management which has a knock on effect,when junior members seek your guidance. Priority should be to put members back on the street to do the job they signed up to. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 77 285 The job is changing predominantly for the worse. Note the use of the word job... I once considered it to be a "calling or vocation"!! 286 Female specific stab vest urgently required.. To think that it's a unisex stab vest. I wear it 60 hours a week and it doesn't fit properly 287 Courses seem to be a big problem. It's only luck if you get one and who you know. 10yrs service still no car course. Uniform is a big thing and the job will always continue to purchase the cheapiest clothing ever. 288 Very difficult to balance family life with job . . Unlike hours huge impact on children 289 The lack of decision making by higher ranks makes my daily tasks nearly impossible. 290 "Frontline policing in this country is only surviving because of the goodwill of the menbers in the organisation.It is not because we are well trained or equiped. We have very poor uniform, equipment, accomodation and vehicles. It is time to modernise the force in line with the rest of the policing world. We need a proper operational uniform, all patrol cars to have police spec, and improved stations" 291 Our job is totally Under resourced with both equipment and manpower wise ! 292 De-briefing of serious incidents and maybe mandatory counseling visits depending on cases... also practical uniform suitable to working terrain.... 293 Being followed home in the past and having threats to kill me by a serious criminal who has now been recently charged with murder. Insufficient vehicles available,others not fit for purpose, impractical uniform, lack of computers, unable to view cctv footage as software blocked, only limited detective unit laptops available to view cctv. 294 Double standards in that line managers talk about standards being maintained but don't maintain them themselves. Little that can be done to report this as I feel that I would be labelled a troublemaker. 295 Incompetence and disinterest from supervisors and management who prevent Gardai from doing their work 296 City centre station with 1 car...incredibly dangerous!!! 297 "Lack of resources. Management trying run districts within budgets which is not possible.Not enough gardai in frontline duties which is s serious health and safety issue to our members and leads to dangers of been assaulted on duty." 298 Uniform not fit for purpose and more defensive equipment needed. 299 Not enough computers and printers in station to deal with increased work activity. New PAF system introduced to keep track of our work,good in principal but without sufficient access to desktops the appropriate entries cannot be made. Access to a phone and computer for a minimum of an hour without interruption is required each day in addition to time being allocated to files(file time not being given to reflect volume/nature of work on my PAF screen.office based members using up desk space. 300 "Total frustration at the hoops the job makes you jump through when you apply for anything to help you do your work computers etc or anything your entitled to.plain clothes allowance for example a year waiting mobile phone approved [ ] years and still waiting. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 78 People in charge of ordering purchasing are detached from what's needed. Usb drives are still 2.0 data transfer rates of 8mb instead of usb3.0 100mbs Takes 12 times as long to do basic jobs! They know we will buy them outselfs." 301 i have had no CPD what so ever in 6/7 years ..nothing about new legislation / drug driving nothing .have recieved no refresher First aid course since i left templemore [ ] years ago . 302 Massive void created over past number of years in regards to experience of junior members, leading to unnecessary mistakes! No continuous professional development leading to lack of knowledge and experience again leading to unnecessary mistakes and errors being made in investigations 303 Bad practice carried out on a daily basis, members continually sent out in patrol cars on their own! 304 Uniform is not fit for purpose. District is underresurced both personel and equipment wise. Lack of courses being offered 305 Templemore does not prepare new probationer garda for the job. The observation period of Phase 3 is too short and to be expected to be able to perform all your duties after that time is not practical and doesn't work. This is further compounded by the extra workload probationers have with CPD. CPD have unreal expectations when it comes to what probationers are able to do. There is simply too much work for a probationer to do which has a negative impact on job performance or academic performance 306 How connected people get all the opportunities despite minimal work return. 307 Not getting counselling when dealing with countless traumatic incidents. 308 Work is very challenging, massively under resourced, equipment is outdated such as IT system. Also too much of a reliance on paperwork, an updated IT system should be utilised to save time on this. Uniform design is also not designed for operational policing and I don't believe the newly designed uniform addresses this matter. I believe study should be carried out on other international police forces to see best practice and recommendations drawn to up to improve the productivity of the force. 309 We are given insufficient tools eg cars ppe etc to be effective for n our job 310 Need more CPD classroom training in law and hq directives 311 The amount of paperwork is too severe, I can't keep up with statements or files because I don't have the time or facilities to do them. I constantly worry about paperwork when I'm at home and it affects my time with my family. I am often not afforded a meal break and still expected to perform, I feel obliged to work even when I'm sick because of pressure from management. I don't think they understand the stresses of modern policing. I feel like paperwork prevents me from doing my job effectively 312 Management are so far removed from front line policing that they don't understand or appreciate the stresses of the modern job. We are thoroughly under resourced and the more senior front line staff aren't appreciated enough though they do the job and are also the ones leading the way in terms of the newer recruits. The quantity of paperwork and duplication/triplication has gone beyond a joke and is not sustainable with current resourcing to allow proactive policing!!! 313 Organisation is being turned into a corporation. When I go to a call the only thing that concerns me is how I ensure I look after myself and protect myself from all levels of management. Mgmt in the majority are there because of nepotism. Very few competent managers who have a understanding or actual experience of what I do. No one other than my unit colleagues actually looks out for me or has my back. Senior mgmt only care about their perceived image to the media, politicians, other senior mgmt GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 79 314 Undervalued and opinions not taken into account by management 315 The perception that it's “who you know, not what you know" , whether real or perceived is of great concern. The systemic bullying that still goes on is shocking. The lack of an effective and neutral appeals process and senior management asjudicating over complaints involving senior management is also very worrying. This job has destroyed elements of my life that I will never get back and the fact that organizationally, no one really cares is both saddening and frustrating. Fools leading the blind. 316 Only for my welfare officer, I would not be here today. Mental health is a big issue in the job . There's not enough information given on who to turn to in difficult times. 317 I've sought promotion ten times. Got second round once. Always reviewed well by managers. Not even getting second round. All promotions bar 6 in my [ ] years service from DDU. Of 6 only 4 from frontline uniform in 20 years. Approx 40 from DDU. I see no realistic prospect of being promoted. I have a good record. I'm seen as diligent and effective and am well educated holding a [ [ Degree attained before joining. I'm unlikely at this stage to be promoted. 318 Management are disengaged from front line policing and are only concerned about promotion budgets and statistics...Management done care about their staff.. 319 Total lack of proper facilities for changing, showering, storing equipment. 320 Working with people who no interest in the work they do 321 Non existent In Service - emailing legislation disgraceful. No direct access to legal section for information and advice. Emphasis on quantity NOT quality. Loss of public respect as discretion eroding. Common sense no longer common. Morale all time low. . . 322 Our role as a Guard is no longer about solving crime or helping the community its more about crime counting figures, keeping management happy, getting money for the exchequor I.e tickets, pleasing every sector of the community and NOT having the support of management when dealing with difficult, aggressive, violent families and sectors of the community, .management all about screwing regular units who do All the work for no reward or thanks 323 Lack of modern portable I.T. equipment is a major drawback for effective policing. 324 Poor management and lack of Garda numbers remains a constant problem as well as a lack of training and being under-equipped to undertake my unit's given role. 325 GRA have been helpful. Currently being bullied by line manager. I believe there is a lot of it happening country wide. Very little recognition of any at all for good work. 326 Too much time spent on updating PULSE. 327 It is very hard to have a work/life balance with unsocial hours, I'm 24 years a garda and I have never spent so much time looking at a computer screen and its beginning to affect my eye sight and it demoralizing. Management do not threat us like adults, its micro managing every detail and I see gardai not putting incidents on pulse for fear of this micro management 328 Total lack of modern equipment, basic equipment which is needed to do our job .. with modem day issues e.g. CCTV, Facebook .. and no adequate training given to members . A force that is too busy making up fancy buzz words , with management that have risen up the ranks on the tails of some one the met in an office some place with no realistic idea of the challenges encountered on a daily basis by the members on the ground . Lack of proper training and equipment.. very demoralising .. 329 Complaints made that are investigated and the first you hear about them is when you receive a letter from GSOC telling you that it is finalised. 330 Management underestimating the work the Gards on the ground do and certain officers of rank who are out of their debt GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 80 331 Lack of proper equipment and technology to carry out my duty and lack of support and leadership within the job is extremely frustrating. There is no comradeship in the job anymore either. 332 Not enough people to do the job. Managers are managing money, not people. 333 Lack of adequate resources, poor management, ridiculous appointments 334 Sergeants not capable of making a decision and only thinking how they are covered and pushing the problem down on top of the garda and have no concern about the unit members or how it effects the front line members and they did not stand up for their unit members. Promotion is their main focus and cover their own back at every turn. The only people promoted are office staff or traffic corp personnel and those with pull, the remainder have the experience and know how can go to hell 335 Constant changes i.e. policy etc . 336 Lack of paid overtime compared to DMA divisions. 337 Promotional competition is not far and transparent, overall the job is slow to change, money for resources are not put in where they should be 338 Feeling under pressure while out sick from management incompetency loosing paper work and getting text messages asking when I'm coming back to work. There is a terrible stigma when females are out sick that we are not fit for the job and find we end up trying to explain ourselves. As it's been quoted many times "sure your having a great holiday " and "oh god you really are sick". 339 The equipment used is well behind whats available. Still being a paper based organisation is extremely counter productive. Workload is ridiculous is some stations. People with 60+ incidents. Gardai dont have time to investigate properly anymore. Its all admin work that we do. You just cant win sometimes. Its nearly as if the s/os have more rights than the ips. 340 Our uniforms are a joke. Hat obsolete and ridiculous. Shirt,tie and pants the same. How can an organisation with a uniform as inadequate as ours be taken seriously. First impression last and ours is a joke. Man power is shocking and moral is very low. We are lucky that we are a tight unit and are more like a family that a unit but others are in a bad shape. UNIFORM is a JOKE. 341 If we had small thing rectified the bigger things wouldn't be so bad. Eg fm radio in patrol car I can spend 7-8 hours out of 10 hour shift in car it's madness we don't have access to FM radio very lonely. 342 we're would I start lack of willingness to change ie the force/service. trying to make the gardai a company ie LM1 LM2 Role holder when it can not be made into such a lot of the work we do cannot be quantified. lack of equipment and quality of same , called in on rest days, can't help people due to over oversite. back wards thinking of management covering there own backs lack of care for gardai by management. 343 No confidence in [ ] who creates bad feeling and cliques within the Division. The whole promotion process within the job is poison and based on favouritism. 344 I feel frustrated with the whole criminal justice system. Going to court is a waste of time. We are doing our job detecting offences courts are letting them off. They dont pay any fines and we have to drive them long distances to prisons for an hour. Very frustrating. I was recently in another department: we have very poor facilites or none compared to them, eg car, stationary, PENS, showers, kitchen chairs in rec rooms. It sometimes feels like were doing our best help people, laws courts judges against us. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 81 345 Mental health training is a must. Training for the person not the job do it can be used in personal life and thus allowing members to be in a more balance emotional health to help others and deal with traumatic events! 346 Inadequate training provided. 347 I don't know if we are unique as as an organisation, there seems to be a continuous effort in promoting higher managers that are neither suitable or ready for the role. No another note pay throughout the ranks is shocking and limits the pool for promotion, ie guard to Sgt why take on much responsibility for so little pay. Most importantly the organisation does nothing to help maintain its member mental well being...... 348 Persistent bullying by management. senior managers made awre of same and wont deal with the manager responsible for the bullying 349 Too many files not enough help. Too much emphasis on saving the budget and administration issues. More manpower needed and dedicated drugs units. More Gardai needed in all areas along the border. 350 The quality of our uniforms is appalling. In a country where it rains a lot there should be an alternative to the cloth cap when performing outdoor duties during inclement weather. We should not be returning to stations with wet hair & damp clothing as water has seeped down into the fleece. The stab vest is heavy & cumbersome. The core shift pattern is exhausting. The equipment in the patrol cars in our district is almost non existent. We are lucky to have one checkpoint in the car boot. 351 Lack of resources both personnel and equipment. Non transparent transfer and promotion competitions both local and national. 352 Modern policing seems to mean less time interacting with the public. Priority is not being seen in public, showing a presence and thus giving that feeling of security that the public require. Modern policing is computer based. This will lead to less confidence in the force as the public won't know their local Garda. The job will become myth 353 Pressure of been looked at by outside agency eg Gsoc social media 354 Predominantly most of the issues I encounter are directly due to senior management i.e. inspector rank up. Zero concern for members wellbeing and workload. The regular unit in my district are the bottom of the barrel and for a so called progressive organisation we are treated like schoolchildren. I am attested almost 11 years and have never seen the job this bad even through the recession. Members wellbeing and career prospects are a hindrance to management's promotion quest 355 Not near enough time to do paperwork. 356 Management take advantage of us, no credit always negative, smallest mistake can destroy you, not enough computers for the paperwork, no facilities for cooking your own food and ever increasing numbers of jobs and checks that seem unnecessary. Management place pressure on us to find incidents whete there isn't any 357 Insufficient rest time and poor training and equipment provided along with terrible working facilities. Totally demoralizing. Physical fitness has been proven to be extremely important in everyday life to enhance mental health, even more important in shift workers. Physical fitness should be incorporated into work life 358 Nepotism, insufficient training, insufficient resources, equipment, uniform, micro management 359 Management (Inspectors and above) are a disgrace with respect to the welfare of Garda members. My colleague committed suicide [ ] and they promised the earth, moon & stars about what they were going to do with respect to member's welfare because he committed suicide as a result of his workload. [ ] months later and it is like he never existed. He never comes up in conversation unless we reminisce about him. [ ]. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 82 360 Lack of facilties equipment and lack of interest by management in the day to day problems members face. Just concerned with having the right statistics not real policing 361 The job has gone so bad and it's gone downhill rapidly. There are people that are promoted to Inspector and above that are clueless and bringing the job to its knees. Equipment/uniform is a major problem. The Job just love posts just for the sake of it. Gardai are not respected by management at all. Civilians are respected so much more and have a greater say in how things are run. Competitions are not run fairly and the majority of the time it's the wrong people that get the job. 362 "Training cancelled due to lack of funding Promotion based primarily on who you know Complete lack of trust for senior management" 363 Bullying and favouritism a huge problem. 364 No support from Management - No training - Work equipment not fit for purpose - Middle management at station level constantly creating issues for employees 365 Shifts affect family life, sick regulations are a joke and urgently need to be addressed and not let it rest until it is sorted. The shifts are all over the place the hours are in constant heavy traffic for dime members and that's adding to an already 13 + hours away from home, family. The GRA say they back the members well I'd like to see it a bit more!! At the minute like a lot of members I'm losing faith in the job and the GRA. 366 The organisation as a whole has changed over the last 10 years. More and more sgts to supts have their eyes on promotion. As a result of this there are no more "Mavericks" people will to stand up to a supervisor if they don't agree effectively speak up for their units. At present the culture in the job is "go to an office, not work and get promoted" resulting in management teams with little or no operational experience, being completely out of touch with how a station runs. 367 I love my job but the job is becoming very difficult due to lack of resources and too much paper work. My job is very stressful and I feel I am never off due to receiving calls on my mobile when I am off duty. 368 Micro managing supervisors 369 Management act as if they were never a uniformed officer, they look us uniformed members bottom of the pile like dirt on their shoe. Man power is at crisis point in my district/station in particular and members are found coming in on days off just to prevent another member being on their own, in a busy border town station. The equipment and technology we have is about 20 years behind modern police forces, body cams, tasers etc. Inservice and courses all depend who you get on with in management 370 10 hour tours are completely ruining my time with my kids due to the long tours away in work and he tiredness these shifts generate. I lost the ability to formulate articulate thoughts working core hours mainly due to nights and since I've changed units and come off nights i can think clearly for the first time in years. I was Chronically fatigued. 371 "Negative attitude to mental health issues. Brown nosing is the way to get forward. No action taken against underppreform members" GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 83 372 I am working an office on my own having raised the issue with management on numerous occasions, huge important workload in this office, other similarboffice in the dmr have apprix 3 to4 in the same office... managment have done nothing 373 I go to numerous scenes involving fatalities. You might get a phonecall from a welfare officer to see how you're doing. Most of the time you don't. I've received 2 phonecalls from welfare officers who genuinely wanted to make sure i was ok after being to a scene and one from a sgt who told me it was a box ticking excerise, that sgt didnt care. More emphasis on welfare to members. Equipment is also important in my job. + yes if I need to contact welfare I will, its nice to think someone cares! 374 Lack of ability for management to talk and listen to the lads and ladies on the ground 375 Many experienced members are being taken from the regular units to specialist units leaving probationers with very little guidance and support. This is also putting extra pressure on probationers to be the finished article alot sooner thus adding much greater pressure 376 The job is not the job I joined 20 years ago and if I could do it again I'd never join. Absolutely awful job to work in and I hate every min I spend there. 377 A lack of equality in the allocation of training courses for members creates stress and ill feeling. 378 Within my district there has been a huge reduction in the number of sergeants which has lead to a very strong shift in the day to day operating of the average Garda. Add to that there only being one inspector and no superintendent. Management is non existent, leaving issues building up and morale non existent. 379 The job is badly organised and managed by incompetent nepitism. Morale is low due to the stone age management. The job needs a lot of modernisation that benefits the members and not the public. 380 Lack of praise fit a job well done but quick to discipline for minor mistakes. Lack of adequate protective equipment. Lack of counselling following disturbing incidents. Favouritism. 381 Bullying. Nepotism. 382 Very stressful workplace, no emphasis put on members health or wellbeing. No direction in the job 383 Inadequate and impractical uniform for regular policing duties, vehicles not fit for the station, lack of management to turn to with queries. Too many changes happening within the force in the last number of yrs and not backed up by proper training. Lack of members in my dmr station and management not willing to fill spots in this sub district. Members are expected to spend more time in station duplicating paper and pulse work as opposed to being out doing policing. 384 Feel unappreciated 385 Suffer from high levels of anxiety due to being overworked. Overwhelmed in instances where i am required to meet impossible deadlines... feeling of isolation and desperation where no help is offered to complete such tasks. Feeling like i am winging it most of the time due to inadequate training in my area of work and stressing at the worry of making mistakes as a result which will b honed in on by media, superiors etc. 386 Being a probationer and having college work continuing for so long. 387 Lack of manpower on units, jobs can’t get done, members expected to attend calls without any assistance, favoritism in relation to the allocation of courses, comradeship is not what it used to be, members are spending most of the time on the computer and doing paper work that they don’t have time for every day policing and have just become a response unit, investigations are meant to be the core but I feel because of all the paper work and palf ect ect ect it has becoming a cya job. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 84 388 Sick leave is not fair for genuine cases critical illness cover is a joke 389 In a station located under pylonhigh voltage wires which you can hear humming at night. Deemed acceptable levels for people to work under but 4km away the pylons were diverted around houses because at that location the health aspect was deemed to great to ignore. 390 Lack of oppurtunity for courses within the job 391 We should be issue with utility vest, correct OC spray holder, an up to date uniform like the Victorian Police, hand held mobile devices, updated dispatch system, we should be trained in CCTV download 392 Stress and mental health not looked after in the job 393 Moral is very low. Disconnect with management.... like they have forgotten they were at the bottom of the ladder once 394 Units no longer pull together. A lot of members are only concerned with what benefits them, what courses they can get, applying for leave in bulk & then cancelling it 395 Training in the job is non existent. Members being left to their own devices by management 396 Nepotism. 397 Being a guard for [>10] years and I'm very proud. But I'm afraid it's killing me slowly. 398 Lack of motivation junior members 399 Lack of recognition for specialist skills that are allegedly "in demand" from head in the sand eejits in management 400 Management very slow to embrace change. too much emphasis placed on administrative work than day to day policing. Technology and equipment are outdated and not fit for purpose. The powers that be desire a modern police force yet are not willing to invest the appropriate funding to do same. Too many stuff are being facilitated with 'easy' numbers. Sought after positions are still determined by 'pull'. Causes dissastification for others 401 Station poorly managed and run leading to constant lack of basic requirements such as vehicles, stationery, evidence bags, evem gloves! Lack of continuous training a huge issue too. 402 We are losing the personal touch so much concerned with covering your a**e. All we are now is report takers and box tickers, we may have a culture in our organisation, but this genetic in our culture as a nation, we are I feel a scapegoat for all that's wrong with society. 403 Supervised by incompetent Sgts. No support from senior managers. Work that's not yours being pushed on you. Being made work alone for 10 hours. Management not sanctioning overtime to supplement unit. Oil regularly runs out in station. No heating or hot water for a week or two during winter. 404 No proper counseling immediately after a traumatic event. No man management skills at upper management, garda received no training in new work practices expected by management. Anxiety from having to work alone constantly. No clear promotion evaluation. No time to make arrests due to man power. Duplication of paperwork. PAF increasingly the work load GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 85 405 Lack of a clear and trust worthy promotion transfer system leaving members very stressed. Members fulfilling duel roles and not being given sufficient time or support. The current paf system is stressing members as when logged on countdown clock can be very stressing. Lack of adequate facilities. Technology equipment and transport making tje work life more difficult for members. The organisation still sees us as a number and unwilling to address work life balance in a meaningful way 406 "Back from maternity leave No meeting as per code. Role change on day of return. No one to ask was I ok or have any requirements just told. No support. Gra rep fantastic." 407 Continuous professional development is very poor. We are not trained to investigate crimes which are relatively new, ie crimes via social media and our managers cannot give us advice as they are not trained either. There is a fear that the investigation won't be done properly and that we may get in trouble for neglect of duty. Management are quick to spell out your faults but never congratulate u for good work done. A simple positive remark in investigation notes would suffice. Morale very low. 408 Outdoor uniform not fit for purpose 409 Management more worried about saving money on overtime than anything else including crime investigation and police work 410 transfers are a huge issue. people travelling long distances away from family and no guarantee when or if a transfer will happen 411 The structure within the organisation has changed greatly over the past number of years. Unfortunately the members on the ground get left behind and there is no appreciation for the exceptional work performed over the past number of years. 412 A real lack of appreciation from senior management who expect my role to chop and change without giving me training and then expecting me to cover for one other full time position due to illness from another member without one word of appreciation of feedback but having been publicly shouted at by the same senior manager reducing me to tears. Feeling sick at the thoughts of working and absolutely afraid to go sick or sometimes even ask for leave. Seems to be the harder you try the worse off 413 Cpd seems to have ceased, members only learn of new initiatives and legislation via the media, no refresher courses on anything, vehicles purchased are family cars not suited to policework, not enough staff, not enough supervisors, nowhere to reference questions for court. 414 Paf is bull[ ]. When people of Ireland get the police forcé they want they will cry out for the police force they had. Use to love my job . Can't wait till 30 done now 415 Having additional duties forced upon us by senior ranks who also expect us to deal with regular matters more quickly than before 416 I feel management do not care. Nepotism is alive and well. 417 Too much oversight, improper working equipment I.e cars I.t personal protection equipment. Unfair completions within the organisation. Management structure which is not fit for purpose. 418 As a probationer , allocated time to allow for cpd work. Having a minimum of five files in a station where it is difficult to come across files. Focus on numbers such as intel, charge sheets, fcpns, summons, to judge how well you are doing your job. 419 Complete overhaul required. The whole Management system requires changing. Plus the way persons are promoted need addressing (its well known its all about who you know and it's not even hidden in the job) .. Exams like Sgtsare also a joke, again depends who you know and you'll get answers, again known by the whole organisation. You don't get promoted on merit you get promoted on who you know and who they know etc. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 86 420 Having major issues with [ ] attached to the station. Matter raised with management and GRA. Don't feel I am being listened to. It appears that management are afraid to tackle issue. 421 Management publicly comment that they care about the members welfare when in reality they don't. If you are out long term due to sickness or injury on duty you are no good to management. You are expected to work even when physically/mentally unable. The code is used as a stick to beat a junior or low rank member. 422 Lack of protection in station from prisoners, prisoners brought into an office with desk & chairs v unsafe for members. Proper custody suite & screens required to protect members & staff from violent prisoners. 423 CPD training for phase 2 & 3 probationers vastly disconnected to everyday policing. Too much effort on paperwork then practical skills needed. 424 How come the only people I know on the new uniform don't wear one, don't run after people, don't jump walls and have no experience or authority when it comes to determining what I'll have to wear everyday. Also where is my taser and how come it is still impossible to get driving courses but ok to be put in situations every day that require blue light driving? 425 Not having proper equipment to do our job 426 Simple technology could improve the job immensel, also proper uniform would be ideal!! 427 AGS works in a situation where new facilities are only built when politically expedient. Resources are lacking in the basics but some gob[ ]es only want to spend on big flashy stuff Q7s etc. My area basically i buy what i need and lose money just to be able to do my job. The heating in our interview suite only works intermittently but hey ho flashy [ ] for photo opportunities is more important. The new Dpsu doesnt even have a car!!!!! Facilities for rest recuperation are well down the list. 428 Manpower is ridiculous. We have [ ] active members on our regular unit. It takes [ ] to run station. No chance of leave. I do [ ] CCTV and am expected to do it on days off and take TOIL. No chance to take TOIL as manpower is ridiculously low. Superintendents ringing wondering why I dont have it done. Pressure to get files done but I'm just finished 14th day in a row in car. No breaks on Fridays, Saturdays or Sundays due to manpower. 429 Lack of courses and training given to certain members. 430 The Nepotism is rife, and getting worse. Change comes from the top. I have no confidence in senior management. 431 Poor equipment causing back pain e.g stab vest and utility belt not fit for purpose. 432 Biggest issue is the lack of upskilling for the instructors. No opportunity for cross training, external influence etc. Unit numbers depleted to ridiculous levels while at the same time allowing instructor numbers dwindle. 433 Inadequate outdated uniform, poor management, too much unnecessary paperwork, 434 The job management have no consideration for members who have long term issues outside the job ie children with special needs, long term illnesses. The lack of understanding is frightening. Bullying is rife and continues to be condoned. Nobody listens to the front line member. 435 Uniform.hands down.little fo management realise the strides that would be made by providing a SOCU type uniform 436 The lack of welfare services within the job is laughable. Welfare have not returned my calls and I have not spoken to my welfare officer despite currently fighting an illness that could end my life. GRA were absolutely hopeless as well. Had it not been for the good will of local super and line manager I don't know what I would have done GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 87 437 The promotion/ interview system Is so flawed. It's not impartial and it's not independent. Members who are unsuccessful in applications getting the exact same results which is statistically impossible in a competency based interview system (that's conning from an outside expert in the HR industry). These applications are all about pull and all you often the wrong people get the job, it's a farce. Promotions/ postings should be on an evaluation basis and not decided on a 40 min interview! 438 Management don't care about members well being. Any issues raised are dealt with in the usual manner...leave it with me, put it in writing, hoping the member wont. Mgmt priorities are for their own self-esteem and their own progression in the job and will do whatever it takes to achieve their "goals" 439 Difficulty getting leave major concern. Always a struggle to commit to anything socially as a result. 440 The promotion system is a joke. Inadequate managers who can neither manage or police are being promoted. There is a complete emphasis on paper work and returns to the detriment of actual police work 441 Generally feeling unappreciated with more work and less pay 442 There are chairs in work that are set at 90 degrees that are impossible to chill out on and you can get pulled up for closing your eyes in the canteen while on you break. There needs to be a facility in each station where a member can go to chill and recharge batteries even if it is just for twenty minutes ie a quite room. Mental health is a very important issue that is overlooked in the Gardai. Sleepless nights heading into an early shift not knowing what crap is facing you when you go into work 443 Stigma attached to having a 10-15 min sleep during a ten hour shift driving a car needs to be addressed. 444 I have been an appointed detective over [>8] years. I have never received detective training. I have been bullied and reported it higher and told to hold my tongue as the person was moving soon. I have been pregnant in the last [ ] months and had to work on the [ ] floor with no bathroom or lift facilities. I was requested to do [ ] while pregnant [ ]. I refused. 445 Dangerous lack of man power, powerless to change this. 446 Lack of help with mental health issues! Including mental health issues in immediate family. Lack of understanding 447 Insufficient facilities in stations. More demand and more work with no reward or acknowledgment for food honest hard work. 448 "Management thinking our work is over when we get directions from dpp not realising all the time and work that goes into preparing disclosure and for a trial. Bullying is an epidemic currently in the guards and really needs to be tackled. Members not getting recognised on merit just for who you know and who's ass you've kissed. Very demoralizing" 449 Limited resources. Ie cars, equipment, access to computers. Pointless paper based reports when management can get into from pulse. 450 Biggest problem is lack of resources. Basic uniform needed. Don't know [who is] designing the pilot but the only thing clear is they have not been operational in a while. 451 After working in two different regions adjusting to the different guidelines/rules is stressful and frustrating. While policing should differ depending on the area you policing, the policies, structures, entitlement and rules shouldn't change, we are one organization so there should be the same rules for everyone no matter where your stationed in the country. 452 Idiots need to stop being promoted. Promote on skill and suitability only. 453 I really hope my colleagues complete this survey because the job is septic and the public and management need to realise this. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 88 454 Stress is a major issue. Going to work and rather than looking at incidents that happen in the area over the previous days. You're checking a PALF screen and emails seeing what issues you now face on that day. Other stress is trying to sort these issues as the detail is unknown when returning from rest days. Higher ranking members cause stress by making threats and pulling people up on unimportant issues. 455 Station is 30 years old and feels unsatisfactory. 456 The remit of an operational uniformed Garda is far to wide and not role specific. i.e. carrying out detailed investigations, court attendence, frontline operational policing, vetting, certs of character, passport duties, house to house collection applications, prosecuting summary court cases, traffic policing etc. This remit is too wide and unmanagable for a frontline operational Garda. The organisation needs to clarify the role of the uniform Garda and make it an achievable duty. 457 Not getting essential courses ie car courses. Impractical equipment issued because it's cheaper or having people in offices too worried about how it's perceived ie looking too aggressive instead of taking the uniformed member into consideration instead as we are the people that have to wear/use it. Stop treating the job as a corporation we do not have share holders clients or customers we can't receive bonus/incentives for a job well done telling us well done can be patronizing 458 The interview system is set up to benefit certain people doesn't reflect people's abilities or work ethic 459 Terrible supervision. Have a [ ] with rats as an office. 460 Lack of resources in the job. Too much bureaucracy 461 Having a special needs child and all that entails, missing work having to use leave for appointments. Had no choice but to job share. Feel there should be more support for members who have children with special needs, maybe some extra specific days they can take, time off for appointments, free counselling service that will give more than 6 sessions a year, as this is a life-long situation. 462 It just seems that more and more work and pressure is heaped on but we are not given the training or tools to cope or adjust to these changes, just expected to get on with it. Can feel like I'm winging it a lot of the time and can be embarrassing dealing with people who expect us to have basic facilities like being able to view CCTV footage and we don't. I have to travel to my district HQ to do that. 463 Too much change at once. Paf is counter productive and is resulting in members being tied to PC as opposed to put on street/getting important work done. Paf is all about management covering themselves. 464 "Lack of consistent training, CPD is simply a tick the box exercise for instructors. I do believe that mental health is an unspoken truth in the job. I've heard of nobody with issues but considering what we are faced with daily, there must be issues" 465 The level of nepotism is unbelievably high in the force. Unless you are in a golden circle your chances of advancement are limited. Certain sections, ie detectives, get the lions share of overtime etc.... 466 Bullying by supervisor and health and safety issues 467 Over sight has increased and has work load, but training and manpower have not. The job is all stick and no carrot. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 89 468 The modernisation of the job is shocking we have all these new probationers joining and the equipment and technology we have to do our job is embarrassing! the pulse system is so old fashioned and awkward in this day and age is unacceptable! Morale is low because upstairs don't sit down to actually communicate with front line gardai this needs to change and the white shirts need to come out of the office in inform/include us in decisions that effect us 469 Complete lack of understanding of management as what is now required at ground level. From basic stationary to uniform to equipment 470 Poor equipment a major concern 471 On the regular u are constantly getting new incidents 2 deal with but u can get time to deal with ones u got b4, I think there needs to be some sort of getting the information and then a unit can take over some incidents with getting statements etc help with information gathering and member feels less stress of the constant back log of paper & new incidents that seem 2 pile up on them.some sort of flexibility with members who have kids on start times as creche dont open early 2 get in on time 472 Junior members in DMR required to do the work of Sergeants due to lack of Sergeants in stations 473 No training. New laws being introduced and changes to law and no cpd or training also new procedures ie property - no property book anymore but yet again no training. No tutor guards on units and me being the only guard and I have 4 probationers and I’m not a Tudor guard. 474 Lack of welfare for those out long term due to injury on duty. Also ongoing stress caused by being regularly cut off the payroll and being left with no wages on Thursday for weeks at a time due to an inefficient payroll system. Wages I’m entitled to. It causes hardship and stress and illness and nobody is accountable or seems to care. 475 Issues are the same as always - too much work, too few members, too many unrealistic demands from management. All this leads to stress. Have considered leaving the job for these reasons. 476 No set position available and I'm being pulled from one station to another doing jobs that I have no training in in order to provide returns 477 Inadequate mental health assistance and understanding. 478 Lack of support in role ... feeling isolated 479 As a member of the regular unit it sometimes feels that we are the only ones accountable to attend all calls. I am nearly [>5] years in the job and yet to receive any additional training. Also senior management lack of support when subject to GSOC complaint which has resulted in [ ]. Was referred to as [ ] an email to the [senior officer] who did not even try and back his members who were referred to as [ ]. The lack of training courses is very frustrating. 480 Management have zero respect for members on regular units doing frontline policing. 481 Lack of communication and decision in relation to civilianisation impacting on morale - what roles are being civilianised and when. 482 Lack of clear reporting lines and structures with the introduction of civilian staff 483 Massive disconnect between management & GARDA rank, all stick no carrot! 484 Grossly incompetent management putting memebrs lives in danger o a daliy basis GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 90 485 The workload has increased significantly and as a result we are not able to do our job of preventing crime and helping the public. We spend our day rushing around trying to get statements together for files and sitting at a computer because the sergeant wants it done straight away and doesn't seem to be aware of how busy the public office or car can be. Poor communication between sergeants and uniformed Gardai is killing morale. 486 The lack of trust from management 487 The job promoting people who have pull and are not suitable candidates. And resulting in demoralisation and a lack of transparency in the appointments process. It sickens me. There's no consistency. 488 Promotion system is so rigged with nepotism and pull it's unreal. Scrap the competency based crap and look at real police work and the person's ability to manage a team 489 Higher management continue to make changes that are not needed while ignoring those on the ground re making proper changes. Vehicles that a cage and lights away from being bog standard family cars. Lack of driver training. Higher ranks desperate to through the lower rank under the buss in an effort to raise their profile and move up the ladder. 490 I was injured on duty [ ] ago. The incident was not investigated or even recorded on PULSE. I returned to work [ ] months later & had to fight to get it recorded as an incident. The [person] who injured me was never spoken to & therefore no prosecution was ever considered. I was extremely angry & upset about this. I still am to some extent. If I was investigating the same incident with a civilian injured party I would be disciplined if I hadn't done my job. Welfare of members is not a priority. 491 There are many days I spend more time searching for cars, computers of colleagues to assist me than I spend doing the job. It's soul destroying. 492 Job has changed so much. Management concerned with figures statistics paf etc lost touch with policing. Trying to run organisation as commercial business. Policing is not & never can be. Dont care about ordinary members. decent hardworking members overlooked for promotion its still who u know. Huge suicide rate -not being acknowledged. a lot of us now hate the job.Financial commitments has us trapped. Not the job I joined. Feel sad for new recruits Wouldn't encourage anyone to join. Sad to say 493 Management make a mistake, its a learning curve, a guard makes a mistake-its discipline! 494 Personal protection equipment is cheap, antiquated and sub standard. Patrol cars are not suitable. Lack of resources. Management are too far removed from front line policing, they policed in the 80s and 90s when the country was completely different. There is too much duplication of paperwork, pulse has not solved this issue. File presentation should be streamlined nationally like a cm13, rather than every individual sergeant having there on opinion on how an investigation file is completed. 495 Management only see you as a number, not a person with a life outside the job. 496 Lack of training, including IT training. 497 Out on sick leave atm because of work stress. 498 Lack of in-service training, facilities, underpaid. Too much interference from management. 499 Line managers are being promoted because some one thought they were a good guard. That does not mean they are a good supervisor. Many lack basic interpersonal skills. 500 Micromanagement esp since pulse 6.8 has created a feeling that I am no longer valued, trusted, respected for my abilities and experience or seen as an individual with my own unique skills and abilities but simply treated as a resource, no different than any other member....like a worker bee or an ant with no freedom to use my individual personality when carrying out my duties. Poor analogy perhaps but the job only wants Yes men GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 91 501 Major lack of resources including vehicles unfit for purpose, uniform unfit for purpose, anpr should be fitted to every car, not enough jeeps, motorcycles, not enough members on units, too many guards in offices, too much time on administrative side and not on crime, inconsistentcy of judges, unfair promotional opportunities, lack of trust on recording crime, interviews of prisoners should not [be] recorded and later transcribed. 502 Pay. Senior management undermining the work of the regular Garda by their conduct and poor management. poor IT. poor cars. Poor equipment. urgent need of tazers for all uniformed members. poor uniform. 503 Bringing problems to the attention of insp and nothing being done to help . Full time driver , over pems 36 active files on screen assisting a probationer and no time to do my files . Told to stop coming in on my days off but not given time during my working day to do it 504 Management does not acknowledge the difficulties of balancing children and shift work especially when both parents are members and working core hours. 505 The hierarchy always putting indirect pressure on members by watching their everymood as if they only joined appearing as if they are waiting to pounce. Always expecting more from members when understand i.e all files down with 2 -3 months but don't let you have days on files or given time to get statements if out in the car they want more and more checkpoints done thus stressing about files and how you'll get them completed. Always wanting more but giving nothing. In my opinion. 506 Not enough supervision. Units left to their own devices. People who work hard not appreciated. Dossers not pulled up or challenged by management even if a complaint is made about them. 507 The amount of people that can go on light duties for long periods when it is obvious they are well capable of getting back to work. Other gardai have to take on the extra work. 508 Not being trained in the use of ASP and spray despite working in [ ] person station and having applied [ ] times for both courses and been injured twice on duty because of lack of equipment. 509 Gardai no longer work together.Every rank now seems to be just about covering their own backside and wats it. GSOC and other bodies seem to be just out to persecute Gardai this effects how Gardai decisions 510 The feeling we are undervalued by the government and the sheer lack of funding for equipment makes me worry what the future holds. 511 Extreme problem with morale due to lack of staff, equipment and good management. No cpd in years. Problems getting paid what we're owed. 512 Management do not care about their members. There is a total divide between management and regular members. Management are paper pushers abd have forgotten what it is like to be on the regular. They do not back their members at all. 513 job is becoming very orientated towards public relations. insufficient time being allocated to actually carry out policing duties and following up on crimes. eg on a crossover "you can't go arrest your suspect, you must go out on beat until 4.15". Management at officer level not approachable and reasonable requests fall on deaf ears. feeling undervalued by management. equipment and PPE not fit for purpose and outdated 514 Going to calls on my own, not particularly out of fear of safety, but more so to have a witness to confirm what happened. Vexatious complaints places garda as suspects in gsoc investigations. And the onus on a singular garda to prove him/herself innocent. Uneven workloads, no regard as to how busy a particular garda maybe. Almost impossible task in getting information from crime and security re phones, computers, social media. Garda with zero computer access in their own stations. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 92 515 There is a complete lack of empathy towards uniform garda from management on the level of stress that members are dealing with. 516 Due to lack of resources and constant pressure from Sergeants and Senior Management, it has had a detrimental effect on my mental health. I have had to visit my GP due to stress, etc and have to hide the fact I am struggling every single day in work because Management don't care about Guards. They care about figures/statistics and their own political gain. The job has effected my relationship because I am constantly stressed. I cry at least once a week because of work and don't sleep properly. 517 Zero morale, terrible resources, zero CPD, no manpower to cover sick leave annual leave or even court appearances during the day. Senior management papering over the cracks instead of highlighting the problems in the job. Paperwork is a complete joke, for eg we're still doing interviews with prisoners where everything need to be physically written down, kills the flow of the interview and can create errors, absolute joke in this day and age this is still how we conduct interviews with criminals. 518 There is absolutely no appetite for changes in managerial quarters judging by the continual promotion of certain persons. Management are unapologetic in their actions in this regards, the incompetence continues 519 Lack of understanding from management, welfare of members not being a priority when it should, huge manpower issues not being addressed, public perception being more important to management then minding their own members, members being disciplined for minor things when management get away with huge mistakes 520 Job is all about pull who you know nothing to do with work. End of the day only a number nobody cares about you. 521 Lack of breaks, reliefs, industrial cleaners being used in a clsed work environment, no sanity facilities for the ladies bathrooms, no natural light or air in the [ ] room, no retraining, no answers to countless questions about losing positions. 522 Being injured on duty, management abuse their power and continue to bully when they can, stress levels are hight, diagnosed with PTSD, management seem to try to screw with your head constantly, they are ungrateful, do not appreciate the work that reg members put in, only seeking to advance themselves. they openly abuse -shout, demean, put down members, they fail to inform members of medical appointments, failure to pass on medical reports, are conservative with information to senior officers 523 The less you do the better as no consequences and from supervisors up don't care and the individual that does work gets to carry the extra work load. If you don't have a senior manager looking after you don't get promoted. Bullying is common and if you say anything against the organisation there will be repercussions for you. Welfare is a joke and of no use to members who have issues caused by the job. 524 Extreme levels of stress. Only those who work get grief. Management not prepared to honestly tackle real issues. Constantly worried about being sacked because of unfair workload. Paper work increasing not decreasing and everything duplicated or triplicated. PULSE still backed up by paper. Completely undervalued and under appreciated because I'm not going for promotion. 525 Well being is of serious importance to all members. Lots of help is required. 526 As stated in the force's feedback survey, and the PALF course, and the Ethics course: Gardaí to sergeant are fine , from inspector up to commissioner it becomes a pit of corruption and poor decision making. The Garda uniform is from the 80's and the new one looks like a child designed it. Why can we not just take the London Met uniform? A Patten style reform is needed to clean up the force, clear out at the higher ranks and more focus on proactive police work not reactive police work. 527 Lack of proper resources. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 93 528 Paperwork has tripled in the job. Everything that is on pulse is duplicated over and over which is unnecessary. Feel like I'm tied to my desk instead of out there doing my job. And this is after the so called promise to reduce paperwork 529 Garda members not been replaced following transfers therefore increasing work load and stress 530 The promotion process is based on 'cliques' rather than actual suitability or ability. The competency forms and interviews need to be scrapped. Any system that can be learned or studied is ineffective. Promotion should be based on passing an exam and an aptitude test. No interviews necessary. Like PSNI system. Interviews are a way of senior management controlling promotions. 531 Guards on the street are trying their best with poor cars, poor equipment, lack of manpower and management doesn't care one bit. Very demoralising! 532 I work as a detective in [urban area]. I do not leave the office other than getting CCTV or statements, due to the volume of paperwork I have to deal with. Even on nights, we stay in all night long to clear paper. This is not what being a detective is about. We are not outside getting to know people. 533 Injured on duty, felt abandoned & isolated by all, lack of support. My life and members put at risk as corners cut. On my return, no return to work plan. I had to fight for help and assistance, this should not be the case. Uncertainty of being on non-confrontational light duty means one does not know where their future lies in AGS. There needs to be a definition for what types of roles non-confront can do etc. & clear career paths. Civilianisation now adds a further needless stress to members. 534 Very poor equipment ,cars. Nowhere to rest during break i.e a couch. Very poor frontline management ,endless paperwork. Hard to get basics like paper, staplers, pens, batteries! 535 Being a Guard in [urban area] is hell on earth. 536 First line managers are not the issue when questions are asked about managers it is middle management, who are concentrating on the tick the box exercise rather than looking at all the work that has been done, I guess feeling undervalued by middle management who are on the promotion trail and have no genuine thought or care for the hard working guard on the ground. 537 Lack of technology to assist apprehension of criminals is the biggest drawback, stress activator in my line of work. We want to do the job and stop crime but AGS don't seem to want to invest in it. Policing in the 1980s, biggest frustration among co workers. Rest, pay, etc is NOT an issue for me or most of my colleagues. Revolving door court system is second biggest stress factor, how many times can your resolve be tested in catching criminals to watch them walk out the court door.....#justice 538 Constant doubling up of paperwork. Made do things that are irrelevant not being trusted to make decisions. Taking statements for every little thing doing files on things that are not going anywhere. Lack of computers files rooms. Sgts that have no interest everyone just trying to cover their own holes. 539 The lack of change in the operational uniform in my two decades in the job. To see what other forces have by comparison is shameful on management. 540 Underappreciated. It's a box ticking exercise now at work. Management only interested in covering their *****. 541 Poor CPD. Promotion determined by personal circumstances rather than actual interview performance. 542 I have been employed by the organisation for over 10 years and have seen things change greatly. I am hugely concerned about burnout, minimal staff on the unit and it is an extremely busy and challenging station to work in. Newer colleagues have approached me concerned about their own stress levels. The new PALF system has its benefits but we are adopting a corporate approach which is not feasible given the nature of the job. We need more numbers or burnout is going to have a huge impact. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 94 543 Nepotism relating to promotion and training courses within the job is rife. It impacts on morale and leads to less competent members progressing within the job while more appropriate candidates are left to languish. 544 Not knowing where I will be in 6 or 12 months time due to civilianisation and organisational change. Not knowing how this will impact on my young family as my husband is a frontline uniformed member on shift. Our childcare currently works around our hours. Also I am on temporary transfer the past [ ] years and this instability of this is stressful, the whole issue of temporary transfers needs to be addressed and regularised throughout the organisation. 545 There has been no CPD for a number of years, very concerning due to the amount of new legislation and work practices being introduced 546 Understaffed and applying new standards which is great but retrospectively and alloying [sic] then to investigations is not fair. 547 In traffic not receiving the right vehicles and equipment or training. 548 I feel there is a complete sexual discrimination with certain jobs. Going to female Gardai who are considered "good looking". 549 I have been on a temporary transfer to a specialised unit for [>5] years now with no sign of being made permanent. I didn't apply for any national units as we were promised appointments. [] years later that still hasn't happened. We are constantly worried that our unit may be disbanded and we could end up back on the regular. 550 I would like to see that surveys like this actually mean something instead of another paper exercise. Members need to feel valued and if this survey doesn't change anything then it's just another sign of how I feel my position or feelings do not matter. I honestly feel like I'm a number and that I don't matter. Again as always my opinion format matter. We also need a new uniform and uniform members should be listened to. Uniform members are the backbone and need to be respected 551 "Management are too far removed from frontline Gardaí. Serious lack of modern equipment to do our jobs. Eg outdated uniforms and unsuitable vehicles. Lack of opportunities within the job, ie not enough courses on the go." 552 Lack of progression and opportunities in station I work in. No motivation anymore as doing job and position for 10 years and no sign of progression 553 I believe the major issues is promotion and transfers and members with no "pull" having no chance of promotion or transfer. 554 Complete lack of understanding from inspector rank upwards on day to day policing and how uniformed members are coping within a broken system . 555 That there is no immediate welfare action for the Garda as a result of a traumatic issue - it's still hit and miss in relation to peer support. There should be a welfare officer in every division. 556 Huge paperwork involved in job has taken the actual policing work out of the job which is policing. Too much of the job is paper focused as opposed to be out policing. Too much Duplication & triplication. 557 Senior management lacking the importance and relevance of what I'm trying to do and what i need to do the job better 558 The system used for promotions, lateral moves within the job and transfers is unfit for purpose 559 Feel there is a gender imbalance and female Gardai often get preferential treatment. Management don't help members who are genuinely sick. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 95 560 The job has and always will be a place where who you know matters more than what you do or your ability. County footballers advancing and being looked after because they play for [ ]. People being bullied and victimised because they are are different and once a senior manager gets a set against you; you may as well forget about getting anything until he is well retired or 6ft under. 561 "- lack of appreciation by management. - lack of team comraderie - feel there should be regular team meetings of what's going on, work well done, improvements to be made etc. - more emphasis needed on wellness, mental health, building up team relationship" 562 Lack of clarity on position, disparity in pay (not receiving an allowance when other members are). 563 In adequate resources to do the job required and we are just covering the cracks, uniform not fit for purpose and incompetent management. to concerned with PR, ass covering and coming up with useless ideas that hinder guards on the frontline just so they can get promoted from it. They add to the stressful day to day workings instead of asking us what ideas we have that can make it a better, more efficient service and a happier work environment. 564 Change being forced upon us. Members not being treated or paid equally. Lack of communication in relation to civilianisation. 565 Shift work is too much. Need to get off nights after forty years of age. Not safe. Constantly tired - like a zombie frequently irritable. 566 Complete lack of support after dealing with traumatic incidents. 567 Lack of support by management and reps. 568 Nobody cares. You are just a number. Females very much undervalued and treated as 2nd class citizens. 569 I don't love the job any more. I use to really enjoy it. 570 Garda levels were depleted by a third leaving the remaing gardai in the section exasperated with what has to be done day to day . There is no information coming as to when more staff is coming in . The last recruitment to the section was over [> 8] years ago. 571 I once attended a doctor and was informed that “epidemic" levels of members of AGS are utilising the services of []. Mental health is swept under the carpet and is not being addressed by the Org as it apparently doesn't exist and if you ask for help nothing changes and you're labelled for the entirety of your career which I've seen over the last 18 years. Nobody cares and it will continue to exacerbate and the future. Is not looking bright for us unfortunately. 572 Forced civilianisation. Not proven to be cost-effective in a technical area. Regulation 14 Gardaí of which there are 100 strong cannot be put out into mainstream policing as they were hired for a technical role. They did not go to Templemore etc. Their career path has been stifled. 573 Management does not consider the ordinary guard on the ground. 574 Poor unsuitable uniform. 575 Management don't give a dam about lower ranks. Do as I say culture still prevalent. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 96 576 Lack of leadership from top down. 577 Having line managers unwilling to make positive change no matter how small. Unwilling to rock the boat. Working hours to suit themselves whil regular members slog away at all hours. Preforming the roles of line managers while theyre absent with no thanks despite making their life easier. Keeping the show going with ZERO help, chance of improvement, promotion without pull. 578 Feel that the Gardai are heading in the same direction as the Met in UK who now due to a never ending workload have a big issue with sickness and stress. 579 I feel that successive Governments have demoralised and damaged the rank and file members and how we are viewed by the public. The financial stress that we have been put under and still demand that we are prepared to put ourselves in harms way. Colleague's injured on duty should receive the best medical care and not have worry about reduced pay due to injury on duty. I feel the pride in being a member of An Garda Siochana has been greatly diminished over recent years. 580 "Poor Facilities and not kept clean or maintained. No showers. No appropriate locker room. No lunch areas. Poor kitchen facilities. Poor furniture. No proper work station for doing paperwork uninterrupted. No proper facilities for statement taking or call making. Poor equipment. Uniform Is shocking. Elastic waist banded formal trousers. Is the job for real. Paperwork on doing paperwork. It is gone beyond a joke. No exercises areas. Work 10 to 12 to 15 hour days. No set break times. No man power" 581 Lack of appreciation by management/government 582 Promotional opportunities and compitions for national units being unfair, lack of overtime and lack of sufficient pay for the job being done are all major concerns 583 The wrong people in operational positions unable/unaware of the correct procedures to achieve the best results and not asking lesser ranks for any advice 584 No support offered after sealing with deaths/tragedy 585 I feel we are trying to accommodate so much at the moment from every corner of society and politicians. There isn't a clear path we are travelling on as to how to do our job. We are massively under resourced on practical items that would help our job. There is a massive lack of value from upper management. There is a huge need for extra gardai. Paperwork is not being stream lined or minimised. We are double jobbing where we are entering info by paper and then on pulse. 586 Lack of connection between management & front line staff 587 Unfair competition practices. Some positions are already allocated on an informal basis before a competition is announced. 588 Lack of supervision. Lack of training and career development. Lagging behind technological progress in the industry. Lack of managerial support. No career prospects. Severe lack of staff and equipment. No clerical support. Feeling we are under valued as a section. No one fighting our corner. Management only care about their own career advancement and CVs regardless of the impact of their actions on everyone else. Money more important than people in every way 589 There is a real feeling of unfairness in the promotion system and a lack of trust in the management of the organisation. 590 Was treated poorly after returning to work after an injury on duty, Mainly by [ ] And no consideration from management for your health after returning to work. Complete stress [ ] when [ ] and pay is then cut. 591 Covering other members duties no reward for it. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 97 592 Bullying issue extremely unsatisfactorily dealt with. 593 I work for a [ ] in [ ]. Accommodation and working conditions are very poor and management seem unwilling to change these conditions. 594 Lack of official support following traumatic incidents in work - limited to token support from welfare officer and referral to councillor limited to 6 sessions. No referral to occupational health. No support from GRA. 595 Garda management not listening to knowledge and opinions of members at lower levels within the organization, feels like our opinions don't matter and therefore there is no value paced on the work we do. It's hard to work in a job when you realise no one in senior management thinks what you do is important and this is continually shown by decisions that are made without any consultation with people on the ground who have first hand knowledge. 596 "The hand out of course to the same individuals and some members not receiving course in several years even when applying for them and being overlooked. Certain positions not been advertised and created, and already filled not giving the others an opportunity. This shows disregard and lack of respect by managers and supervisors." 597 Poor promotion system does not give members incentives to go for promotion. 598 Promoted people used everyone to get further up the line. 599 Nil 600 Constant scaremongering about blocking and sacking. Massive seperation between operational members and management. No trust afforded to members that basic bread and butter checkpoints and patrol are being done. Leavd members to do them and stop structuring checkpoints simply for figures to impress the media and so on. 601 For your info I am plain clothes operational but office based (not defined as clerical), and i'm based within the DMR physical region but on a national unit there is no section for the national regions. 602 Lack of training & courses to develop career. 603 In relation to the survey, the answer options are confusing.[sic]did impact me and the number, I welcome the survey and am interested to see the outcome. 604 Having no say in issues that effect [sic]. 605 We say we are professional but use out-dated systems. We are overloaded by paperwork, court and still have to try to do our job. Pay has also an effect on all our morale. Just give us back our pay. We are not like other organisations, we can't strike and we work horrible hours, are assaulted and still have no backing from management or the government. We need positive change, and help. 606 There is little or no proactive support for frontline members dealing with traumatic events. I spent 9 years in a busy DMR station and not once was I contacted by a welfare officer following traumatic incidents. Everything became a numbers game. It's about correct recording of incidents now and not investigations. There is no sense of genuine support from the organisation. Gardaí are struggling massively. I never realised the extent of the stress I was under until I left frontline policing. 607 I feel there is a growing detachment from management and members on operational duties. Because of their lack of understanding of the workloads regular units have to undertake with less resources. Management are concerned with ticking boxes and in essence not interested in adequately training and equipment members for provide an efficient reliable service to the public. I don't feel management are part of the "team". Difficult to work for someone with no interest in you. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 98 608 Incompetent sergeant likes to bully probationers on the unit. Been happening for years, management aware and still refuse to address the problem. 609 No Policy in place governing the area I work in leading to decisions having to be made on the ground as opposed to Policy being inforced by Senior Management!!!! Not getting the required support from Local Management as they are too caught up with self promotion within the organisation or looking to better their prospects with external agencies!! Taking on mentoring role despite having no training at all for same!! 610 Feeling that senior management in the organisation are completely disconnected from the front line. And what's worse they have no desire to try and understand, to look for input when making changes or consult on any issues that are effecting the force. Despite the language used changes come about by direction rather than through consultation with those who actually do the job. 611 Observation of newly qualified members not attending court, flanked by lazy tutors, little or no idea how to carry out checkpoints or issue the basics such as fcpns for offenses. 612 Sharing Facilities and [] Toilets originally designed for [] Guards with [] civillian staff without consultation. After witnessing [a very serious incident, I was] asked in a [meeting] if I wanted to attend counseling in front of my peers. 613 Lack of leadership from senior management. 614 Bullying from a superior is ignored. There is no way to address it without suffering. Imagine being told to leave it because the Sgt is well thought of, or he has a good reputation. There is no way to address it in the job without the victim getting treated badly. 615 Management have no idea how to treat people who experience the above issues nor do they care. They make unwarranted decisions based on their opinions and to the expense of members. Then having to go sick due to these inadequacies and then being worried about money so you can't repair. No communication and no backing from GRA, leave members isolated and feeling worthless. No people should feel like this. Also ignoring [medical] recommendations is not acceptable. 616 Not much support for persons injured on duty. 617 Job is turning into a farce! Expected driving all the time, only one car out instead of three and as a driver constantly getting incidents. Having 40 incidents and not time to do anything because your the only driver and other have less than ten and rotate in the car. 618 General feeling of distance and lack of unity between all of the various departments, D/Branch, Comm Poll, Traffic, Regular Units. This was not as prominent in years gone bye. 619 The Continuous professional development, especially in my region is terrible. Uniform not adequate and stress levels are extremely high especially for junior members 620 The job is surviving by the goodwill of the rank and file. But management is eating this up and it is running out. We must alwayd be flexible and get no flexibility in return. We are under resourced and over stretched. We are given a workload that cannot be done to the degree that oversight requires and are then disciplined for not achieving the impossible. We on the ground are told everything is a priority so we get the blame when we prioritise what we can do. This should be a management issue 621 Workplace bullying is HUGE in this job. Senior rank Garda, one or two in every station that makes life difficult for all. Our job does not have union backing like the private sector. It's a massive issue, Guards will not report bullying because of the stigma of reporting it and the whole cumbersome process of how bullying is dealt with in our job. 622 No in-service training/ First Aid. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 99 623 A chief micro managing the district and putting an unrealistic workload on the regular. Removal of recreation room rest facilities. New members with no interest in the job and no motivation. 624 No matter how much you do management will still push you to do more until you're worn out. You'll get no thanks for all the good work you do but if you make a mistake in the middle of it you'll get hassle. Morale is low. People have realised that it's easier if you do less. People know you won't get promotions or appointments by doing good work, you need pull. 625 Bullying Issues being ignored by Management 626 Lack of management with actual 'people management' skills has created such a demoralised unit to work with it is soul destroying. 627 Being expected to be a robot no regard for emotional feeling of members 628 Have absolutely no confidence in all levels of management within the job who won’t make decisions or take responsibility 629 Management need more training, consideration should be given to improving work place relations, more resources needed, improval of outdated computer systems to make job more efficient, more support in relation to self care, workplace practices and procedures/ standards should be nationwide, not down to individual stations or divisions, transfers should be managed better. 630 Job's [ ]ed. 631 We need more psychological support in the job due to the amount of traumatic incidents that we have to deal with. 632 I cannot wait to retire. This is not the job I joined [> 20] years ago. It's only going to get worse. I am the [ ] generation of my family in AGS there won't be a [ ]. I am saddened by the service we are now giving to the communities we work for. The organisation is top heavy with number crunchers. There are no real police left in management. RIP An Garda Siochana. 633 Nepotism in the job 634 Management don't value our views, they put us under so much pressure and don't listen to what we are saying. There is no room for improvements or promotion if you don't know management or related to them. 635 I'm spending too much time in front of a computer now with everything that has to go on pulse to keep updating it to keep out of trouble instead of being on the street doing what i signed up for. Too much paperwork is preventing gardai doing there jobs. Frustrating. 636 Mental well being not looked after for garda after traumatic events. Special Leave should be available to gardai who experience traumatic events. 637 As [ ] duties as a result of injury on duty and by direction of [ ] there as been little or no attempts by management to engage about long term duties. Results in confusion as duties are not defined. This results in tensions with management as no one clear on duties. Efforts to rectify are and have been met with serious reluctance to engage. [> 5] years, different management over time and different results each time. Zero consistency. 638 Civilian staff bullying members and being very unhelpful. 639 Some questions regarding the supports available or rather not available to members might have been useful. Otherwise long overdue! GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 100 640 No continuous training to maintain skills. No upskilling opportunity. Management clueless as to the reality of frontline Duty. Management only interested in Ass covering with regard to both resources and the funding required to do the job with as little expenditure as possible. Modern management practices largely scorned in favour of status quo. 641 Inadequate or non existent training regarding online and cyber crime. Management seem transfixed upon stats, figures and accountability rather than training for the future 642 If you don't do any 'networking' you have no hope!! 643 Under staffing is a huge problem. No further job opportunities is also an issue. No chance of change from working irregular hours all the time. Long commutes to work with little prospect of transfer. 644 No fairness is competitions 645 Lack of manpower 646 On all early shifts and late shifts I have to go out in the [ ] patrol car on my own, because there are only two of us on a unit (in [ ]). This leaves me vulnerable should anything happen. It also places a tremendous amount of stress and pressure on me, because I am the only car operating within [ ]. It is not safe for me and management don't care whether I am alone or not! Management are totally out of touch with reality and should come out from their desks sometime. 647 Pressure to do tasks while injured, even with doctors certification stating I shouldn't. Pressure from mgmt to increase work load and hours even though am certified injured by [ ]. No assistance with rights as a member injured on duty. 648 I'm consistently tired. Don't feel appreciated. It's hard to see where I'll end up being able to move up or across. The training and equipment given to me is a massive burden. It's nowhere near enough. We do so much more than we should be expected to. I just feel tired mostly. End up feeling run down, sick, fed up. And I haven't got a huge amount of service. I don't want to think where I'll be in 5 or 10 years time. 649 Policy of Roads policing unit investigating all fatal collisions in [ ] is having a serious effect on mental health of members. Members attending too many traumatic scenes and support not sufficient to members. Its my view that the policy should change to that in every other division where roads policing unit are not required to investigate all fatal collisions. Long term mental health is going to be affected. 650 Regular uniform members are regularly undervalued in deference to plain clothes and specialist units. Uniform members in small stations completely ignored and overlooked by management at all levels for promotion, sidewards movement etc. 651 "Lack of resources, unsuitable work environment, e.g. lacking rest facilities etc. Lack of long term support following assault Lack of communication 're ongoing court proceedings etc" 652 Career being held back by local management due to them not wishing to lose competent clerical staff despite educational qualifications. Lack of respect for my career development just to suit their needs. 653 Middle management not embracing the modernisation programme. Ie. Not using PAF. Still using paper etc 654 Promotion is still linked to who you know not how hard you work. There is no uniformity in managements decisions. What's important to one, might't be to another. I'm a detective, if I get promoted I go back into uniform on full shifts which is a big no no for me so I can't go for promotion. A lot being promoted haven't got a clue and their people skills are horrendous. Management don't care about us or victims, only covering themselves. When they mess up there's no come back on them [ .] GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 101 655 I worked in the [ ]. I became extremely unwell due to changes to work procedures and a lack of mental health supports. The work consisted of [] with requests to be rotated to [other] investigations being refused. Mental health supports though already insufficient were removed without consultation and replaced with generic supports for all garda members of the force which were not suitable for the work. Diagnosed with severe PTSD. 656 Having to work on your own - too much time spent on paperwork - losing contact with the public - frustration with assaults on members not being taken seriously by Garda management and politicians who will not legislate for better laws to give protection to the front line the only interest is in tying members hands behind their backs while doing their job even if you do your job to the best of your abilities you can still get in trouble if a complaint is made disciplinary regs, GSOC, Inspectorate? 657 I feel that there are a lack of managers with managerial skills and this is causing the Garda rank members to suffer high levels of stress. Everything in [ ] station is organised at the last minute and Gardai are having to cancel annual leave days and can't avail of their rest days due to this mismanagement. There are a lot of Gardai in [ ] suffering with mental health issues as a result. 658 Lack of safety equipment. Lack of appropriate buildings with emergency exits i.e. garda station with no back door or emergency exit. 659 The job is [ ]ed. 660 The value of Community Relations is wholly disregarded by Management. The day of giving someone a Caution for minor infringments is long gone. 661 Stressful working with civilian officers. 662 Stress is major factor in my role dealing serious sexual offences sometimes against children, and no recognition from management. 663 Poor work facilities, cramped facilities, lack of locker room space, run down station. Poor equipment, uniform and IT equipment. Which in turn promotes poor motivation. 664 Garda management are a complete shambles and will ALWAYS back the higher rank regardless of factual evidence. It's a complete and utter disgrace at the moment. 665 Lack of proper uniform, equipment and technology are seriously impacting the work I do. 666 Feels like you're the one being investigated a lot of the time. Also the more active you are, the more trouble you get into. Not to mention the amount of stress that you're under. 667 Mainly under resourcing, Management penny pinching where overtime is required, insufficient CPD training for the past 10 years, too much paperwork on minor incidents, poor quality equipment or lack of equipment. It appears to be the case that its here's what we have with regards to equipment, training, resources and finances go do a good job with them, and none of them are up to a high enough standard but we are expected to be!!! And is the training management get good enough??? 668 The worst thing about this job and how you go forward is, it's not what you know it's who you know. Morale is still on the floor and management don't do a thing about it to change it. Never once has management sat us down and asked us what could be done to make things better. 669 Not enough parking in [ ] is a major cause of stress, I become anxious as I am afraid I wont be able to get a place to park my car safely. Working accommodation and conditions not satisfactory along with lack of computers has a negative impact on me and my ability to do my job. Garda fleet and not having adequate transport. The ERU, Traffic and RSU are driving BMW and Audi, the investigation units are driving ten year old 1.4 petrol cars and Vans. 670 Dealing with solicitors causes huge problems. Stress of court & judges is also huge. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 102 671 The job has turned into a tick the box exercise that places huge work loads on members by managers who demand results instead of leading by example. Common comment in my district is that [ ] has messed with the mental health of every member as he himself has [a ] condition that effects everyone. 672 Working in an office where public attend: no appointment system no structure. Difficult to work when public waiting 2/3 hours to be seen. System not user friendly. Office without windows: dreary, dismal. 673 "I would not go for promotion as jobs are decided before interviews who gets them. Gardai shoukd not be on interview panels for jobs. It should all be done by civil service commissioners. Also there is no respect for the Garda by senior management. They are always trying to ""get you"" but will not investigate the public if they assault Gardai or make a bogus complaint about a member." 674 "Lack of support for those who may not necessarily have been physically hurt from an incident but may have been emotionally or psychologically severely injured. Investigations conducted by management in the event of Garda injured party should be conducted and prioritised the same as where i/p is civilian. The investigations should be regulary reviewed by senior management and injured party updated on regular basis the same as if they were a civilian. Investigation fully explained to Garda I/P." 675 A feeling that management don't want to listen to our concerns. More worried about public perception than the Guard. 676 Officers prioritising your work for you. 677 It's like the organisation is in free fall lots of change happening but it's all paper based the members on the front line are getting very little support and their training is not addressing their needs. 678 I'm Just sick of the old boys club in the job. It's not what you know buy who you know or are related to. 679 Driving the car for 10 hours-back pain no rest with utility belt. Being told to be out out out. People getting courses because 'they are senior but may not fit the job role. They have kids and 'want to be off the regular' with no interest in the actual job. People on light duties claiming full hours but only working a few and sitting in an office doing nothing. Uniform is uncomfortable and not fit for purpose. No focus on health or fitness if on the regular very hard to keep fit and healthy. 680 The major problem encountered in recent years is the amount of paperwork we do. The systems are not linked and the Pulse System is well past its Best Before date. The whole system should be overhauled and have everything linked in together. We have to to several different platforms to report/record information none of which are linked. The job is more about being efficient rather than being effective. Less time is spent investigating and more time reporting. It's so counter-productive. 681 Lack of training and up-skilling. 682 Organisational change to allow for accountability and the absolute lack of IT support causing increased and duplicated paperwork for core members on regular units is unacceptable and not conducive to on street high visibility policing. More appropriate I/T system to support organisational goals is imperative as opposed to placing unrealistic burdens on the workforce. 683 Very appropriate and relevant survey 684 No first aid training since Templemore, embarrassing and unnerving when first to a scene. Uniform is uncomfortable and is same in very cold weather as in very hot weather, hard to run with all the gear and uniform. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 103 685 I believe the job will never change, regular still suffering so friends can be given handy numbers and when chief or professional standards ask questions its all covered up to look great. Management dont care about regular as car is always left with one in the car on nights. If problems brought up your just asking for trouble. Iv worked many lower paid jobs where they look after the work force better 686 I have zero faith or belief in the GRA and its ability to represent its members in any meaningful way 687 No place to go to vent your issues I.e a HR department. Corruption in various forms from promotions to internal movement. Positions been advertised but everyone knowing who has the position before interviews been held 688 "Favouritism is still rife within An Garda Siochana. Individuals are being selected on who they know rather than what they know. Experience does not come into the picture. The standard of Supervisor is very poor at present. I'd be interested to see how many have undertaken a management course or have previous experience at Managing. The difference in policing between DMR and outside is unbelievable. The amount of paperwork and micro managing is a disgrace outside of the DMR." 689 Not being given courses because i'm not in the clique 690 Bullying and constant criticism from supervisors and managers towards the majority of employees regardless of whether a job is done to a high standard or not. Flagrant favouritism with regard to courses allocation, promotions and lateral movement. Supervisors and managers speaking to members like dogs or completely ignoring them when being spoken to. Lack of maturity and interpersonal training for both. 691 Management do not care enough about well being of gardai on regular units 692 Pulse is not fit for purpose 693 Career advancement based on who you know rather than what you know is soul destroying 694 Bullying by managment is a serious issue 695 Lack of appreciation from management, discipline procedures too robust for minor issues..management have multiple ways of disciplining you for even the most minor of allegations leading to Garda members not highlighting shortfalls for fear of discipline and regulations 10 or 14 696 The more you do in this job the more chance of getting in to trouble and the people who do nothing at all will never have anything said to them which is very wrong and unfair 697 Things need to change drastically with management and soon 698 Lack of adequate training, vehicles and proper up to date CPD on an ongoing basis 699 IT systems provided are outdated and not suited to the job required. Management don't want to hear about any issues. They pass off to anyone else problems that may arise. Sgts try to bully you because they can't handle the work. Wrong people promoted to different ranks that are competent at their role. Equipment not provided for the job they want you to do. Health issues not taken seriously by management. 700 Probationers are under severe pressure to complete pointless CPD work and out given very poor guidelines. This is causing huge stress. Also a severe lack of training when it comes to court duty. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 104 701 Under resourced 702 No trauma training. When work is over your expected to just switch off. No chance 703 Complete disconnect by Garda Management from Inspector Rank up. Ashamed by continuous scandals and embarassed to admit in the force after nearly 30 years, never thought I would feel this way. Behaviour of GSOC a disgrace and inhumane treatment by them with no one to challenge. Government use us as political football and now all Gdai tarred with same brush of corrupt liars. Commish job will be farmed out to non police officer which frankly beggars belief..no issue with outside Police as T.C! 704 The job has changed substantially over the past 5 years and I believe it will continue to do so in the coming years. I hope that everything will become more transparent and I hope that politics won't have as much of a say in An Garda Síochána in the future as it has in the past. 705 Overwhelmed with work on a regular basis, lack of resources in the city where I work, it requires another reasonably big garda station to be able to cope effectively with the level of crime that the city is faced with. One station in the 5th biggest city in the country and has always had a high crime rate, unable to police it fully and properly. 706 Serious lack of CPD. Shocking. Cutbacks but yet after 10 years of nothing. They put money into palf and poxy ethics!! Boils my blood. 707 Management not aware of issues facing frontline Gardai - lack of resources, training, support.......... 708 Counselling services privided by state since 2016 inadequate 709 Lack of leadership and trust being shown by management. Also lack of any compassion being shown by management. Management only interested in stats and numbers. I do believe an gardai Siochána is the only police organisation in the world that counts negative breath tests. And maybe that says all you need to know 710 Having poor support area's that can help on dealing with mental health issues due to the stress of the job. Do not feel that current supports systems will remain confidential 711 Having opportunities to work other/specialised units being taken away from you because of manpower issues is demoralising. Being harassed and officially constantly complained by management for trivial/vexatious matters without recourse on their part is stressful and unnecessary. 712 Not being listened to by management is a huge issue, no empathetic understanding whatsoever when it comes to ones personal life & domestic issues. It all depends on who you are before you are listened to. Management needs a huge change, the unnecessary stress superior officers put their members under is a disgrace. If you are hard-working, the less respect you will get. There is no incentive to work. Changes are needed without delay. 713 No welfare support or counsellors making contact after seroius incidents. Shocking. 714 No training, no resources. Management don't want crime solved anymore. Once crime folders are complete and all boxes are ticked management don't care. Unable to provide any type of service to members of the public and victims of crime due to negligent management. 715 Nepotism, single handily destroying the camaraderie within the organisation. [ ] 716 Negative media commentary that remains unchallenged. 717 I could write an essay here. Disillusioned and dejected due to poor management and rife nepotism and favouritism. 718 The fear of have of going in to work can be crippling, not because of what I face but because of how I'm treated by management GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 105 719 Need more support , better facilities and equipment 720 Modernisation programme is pointless in parts, causing more office workload due to the introduction of private sector style appraisals, no incentive to hit targets or goals. 721 Most of my colleagues of my service are looking forward to retirement. This is a shame because we have 8 years to go but I believe this is what management and government have created 722 Too much paperwork 723 Lack of interest in the amount of service a member has given and this i have found a common complaint from members about to retire in rural stations that their local knowledge is not transferred to his replacement as this means a lot to them as they have spent a career generating local assistance and co operation building bonds with the community which are lost when he retires without introducing the new member to these people which make his work undervalued and not a nice feeling in retirement 724 Management are aware that resources are stretched. So, at best, there is the bare cover of the essential services. Depending on your detail, you will be required to patrol the district, respond to calls etc. or if you are detailed as member in charge: run the public office (phone, counter, radio); fully observe the 1987-2006 Regulations, yet they still insist: upon submission of files/reports; that investigations somehow progress; but don't appreciate that time is required to complete these tasks. 725 Applying for positions and hearing before interview someone else going for the position has already got it. Poor manager skills from Sergeants cannot go to him in relation to a problem as he doesnt know how to deal with it. Lack of resources on the unit working alone with no reliefs no rest period during the tour of duty. No praise for good work or good captures. Constant pressure on Palf & Pulse. 726 Being a tall male i am crippled trying to get in and out of a vehicle which is so low to the ground and extremely bad for my back etc. Myself and numerous amounts of colleagues have the same issue with the vehicles we have. Also a complete lack of courses eg driving, bike, mountain bike etc. 727 "Too much paperwork. Too much work for individuals. Constant frustration at lack of it equipment. Tech advancements of equipment. Too many protocols for every aspect of the job. good work brings more workload" 728 A serious lack of proper continuous professional development training within the job. And no importance put on this. Also a huge lack of proper tools and equipment To be able to professionally and efficiently do the job properly and to a consistent high standard 729 I believe the standard of district officers differs greatly some district to district presently our district officer is out of hisdepth and unable to give a decision Also the constant negative press we are receiving is upsetting and you are wondering what's going to come out next. I have over twenty seven years service and morale was never lower than it is now. I find this is a pity as I believe front line personnel are giving an excellent service under pressure. 730 Low manpower, poor equipment and vehicles, very little opportunity due to manpower 731 The new roster is anti-family, when I'm on for 6 days I barely see my wife and small kids and then on my first two rest days I'm tired cranky and intolerable at times. 732 Too much paperwork. IT not used effectively. Lack of breaks and being told we're not entitled to them. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 106 733 Lack of any effort within the organisation to address morale, and make any positive efforts to address team building, or encourage or support staff. No value or reward system, or even an implication that good work would be rewarded by actual or even lateral promotion. Constant claims by the organisation that interviews are transparent, when members are hearing who got the "job" even before the interviews are held. 734 Favouritism, cronyism and people being looked after in the job are still rife no matter how much enquiries , boards etc are there 735 The delay in delivering Garda Compensation is dreadful. 9 to 11 yrs wait. Civil claims dealt with by PIAB is typically 9 to 15 months. 736 I joined the force to be a policeman. Now it is my job to tick boxes to satisfy the cso, rsa, policing authority. Ombudsman, various Dail committees and management who buy into this nonsense. Nothing more demoralising than the direction of what I once called my vocation has taken. We are no longer a police Force. We are glorified admin staff in uniform. 90% of our time populating pulse drop down tabs. Is that really policing in the 21st century?:( it's soul destroying for me. 737 Lack of recognition of the good work that was done and pandering to the media. 738 Please update the uniform it is not fit for the purpose. 739 Not being proactive enough. Closing the gate after the horse has bolted. Also lack of in service training on crucial elements like refresher training in personal protective equipment i.e. taser. Cant [] anymore because training qualification expired. Management say just carry on untill something goes wrong. 740 Having dealt with a very traumatic incident in the past [] mths, I lost all confidence in myself as an active traffic guard. This didn't matter to Officers & I was expected to carry on & get the necessary returns. I have no idea how I am supposed to get back to normal & pick myself up. The pressure of not being able to do my job as effectively as I did prior to this incident causes me huge stress on a daily basis. I'd like to see a counsellor but in this job you just have to get on with it. 741 Having a job description but pulled from pillar to post to cover other short comings from other units. 742 Waiting over [>5] years for a transfer. Commuting over 3 hours a day to and from work with a [ ] baby at home. Transfer system is very unfair, no transparency. 743 Mandatory debriefing should be introduced after attending certain incidents . 744 The 10 hour shifts are very hard going especially finishing the week on nights. This definitely affects my mental health as I am very over tired and iver wrought and this keads to high levels of anxiety 745 N/A 746 "The fact that there are no opportunities to progress off regular unless you are on with local management. [ ] Regular being treated with contempt by local senior management." 747 Inadequate training and personal development programmes - lack of forward thinking and poor communication from Management. A guard is seen by management, politician's and society as a disposable item, quite frankly we are keeping a bad system, going because the majority believe in sense of duty the public , who unfortunately are never aware of the reality of the job we do. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 107 748 Lack of know how, interest & appreciation from sgt rank on good work done by Gdai lack of Gdai on units which puts pressure on under staffed units lack of assistance know how from sgts to manage minimize paperwork & pulse work to make files pulse invest. notes management of incidents in pulse simple, smooth & effective. Sgts not actively updating incident notes. Leaving incidents which cd be completed & closed on pulse causing unnecessary stress blaring up at Gdai every day logging onto pulse. 749 I just wish there was psychological safety in my workplace. I wish we did things as an organisation because it was the professional thing to do, rather than to "cover ourselves". We have our priorities wrong. While I do not feel stressed at all, because I handle stress well, I am honestly only staying in this job because it is secure and I have a young family and can take a pension in 12 years, which I intend to do the very day I can. Unless there is significant changes. 750 I feel there is a complete lack of interest by higher management in my work. The focus is purely on numbers and arse covering and a total lack of empathy for victims. There is no acknowledgement of the work done by me and my colleagues for victims of serious crime. I feel that this work is completely undervalued. 751 I'm am in An Gda Siochana since [.10 years ] and have only been on one course - [ ]. To improve the force we need updated Education and courses. Not a course almost every 10yrs!! The roster is not a healthy duty for any person to do. 752 More and more bureaucracy and unnecessary paper work, management are more concerned with statistics than people actually doing good police work. We are under resourced and lacking in the adequate technology to do our jobs I have to undertake a 35km round trip to access a pulse computer which is a vital tool in our work. Management expect us to do more with less and to just get on with it and paper over the cracks. 12 years in the job and it is virtually unrecognisable and not for the better 753 Core values no longer exist. Garda management are only engaged in box ticking exercises and it is my view have little or no respect for the frontline members. 754 Blatant corruption in promoting process. 755 I suffer greatly with anxiety. While the new counselling service is fantastic to give 8 sessions i need sessions every 6 weeks all year around. Would like more sessions. Anxiety is totally work related. 756 Lack of cooperation for family friendly hours. 757 High degree of exposure to conflict and violent situations. 758 Too much change being loaded onto members without thinking of the extra workload it puts on members. Instead of getting praised for work you get [ ] about everything you haven't done, updating notes, pems, etc. If you don't do anything, you don't get in trouble. 759 Members moving into positions made for them and promotions to people who have not earned the position. An Garda Siochana Management get promoted on management courses that they do but never put what the learned into practice which just leads to extremely bad leaders. There is Garda members that should be in placements within the job but because they don't have "PULL", they don't get the chance to improve themselves. 760 Not fair guards doing jobs for years now replaced by civilians. What about our health and families. No one cares. 761 Not trained in systems we are expected to use - causes big stresses!! GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 108 762 Working in the countryside provides different types of challenges. The idea that when you need assistance right away, the closest car available may be up to 45 mins away is not good enough. It has nearly ended badly for a colleague and I. The real lack of moral is very disheartening to junior members. Listening to senior members of Garda rank complain constantly puts you off doing anything in the job as it seems it is always likely to cause more work to an already high workload. 763 I hate my job. 764 There is no organisational support. Just management trying to knock you down. 765 People getting Promoted because of "pull"‚ and even having their station picked before the interviews are done. 766 Feel totally removed from Garda Hq and their "ideas". 767 There is a major divide now in the job between frontline and management that is growing by the day. 768 Finding it very difficult claiming sub-allowance for training within the job. You are sent on courses in order to improve yourself and benefit the job and you have to beg to be paid for it. 769 There is a greater divide more than ever between management and the frontline. Sergeant rank is being diminished considerably more over zealous power hungry management. Trust between ranks is fading rapidly and too much repetitive meaningless tasks and duplicated work is draining resources. 770 The sick leave regulations are disgraceful and only make matters worse for people who are genuinely sick. Also when members are out no correspondence from work on any issues. If you are notified it's always last minute. Unbelievably low morale within the force and it's every man/woman for themselves. I didn't join this job to count down the years yet that's what most members are doing. It seems the higher up you go the less you care about the people below. 771 We are so thinly stretched in the [ ] that it will take someone to get hurt very badly in order for anything to change. Morale is so low that I dread going in to work sometimes. Not getting time to complete files or do paper work causes alot of stress, worry and sleepless nights. 772 No training for members re best practice re PULSE and new legislation. 773 No opportunities for those who are skilled qualified and good workers...cronyism, favouritism and nepotism is alive and well...roles are not given to those based on their knowledge and skills rather to those are incapable. The regular are carrying the load. Office staff continue to be accommodated even tho civilisation supposed to take place. Office staff have casual / shorter working week due to lack of clock in system while regular units sinking with workload. 774 Transfers. 775 Senior personnel with poor management and poor man management skills are hampering the organisation. The presence of such people are a damning indictment on a so called open and transparent promotion system. The constant requirement for reports and returns are to the detriment of proper police work. Over accountability of wcbody of very decent people is demoralising and will bring this country the police force it deserves. 776 I believe that change is not properly communicated - when changes add to workload for no apparent reason or changes make systems unworkable the system of evaluating these changes is non existent- the amount of paperwork required now is not recognise by the Organisation such as higher standard of investigation files - required disclosure in criminal cases - the constant retrospective auditing and the inability of administration offices and management to admit mistakes on their part GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 109 777 Being undermined by supervisors who don't understand your role. The constant thinking about your decision making about child sexual abuse and dealing with horrific details of retrospective abuse and then being questioned about your skills to take these statements. No help just criticism. Always feel like you're on your own with no one having your back if you slip up. Constant feeling you're on your own. 778 Lack of appreciation for the effort put into the job. 779 "Investigations hindered as a result of budget. Serious incidents not being transmitted to regular unit. E.g. searched carried out or potential armed suspects in our area. Inadequate support of specialised units. E.g. no armed unit available on certain calls. Members going to calls on their own. Members having to rely on their mobile phone for gps and sat nav. Stab vests out of date and I'll fitting. Patrol cars not fit for purpose. Inadequate training in vital areas. No trust in management." 780 Management completely and totally out of touch with reality. 781 Management do not listen so people on the ground. 782 poor management, knee jerk reactions to everything. 783 Unfair appointment and promotion system. All pre-determined. 784 Lack of proper equipment and transportation. 785 Decisions by greater management in relation to the Garda Síochána such as allowing stations to be closed and freezing recruitment have had an extremely detrimental effect on the job. Some of these individuals have been promoted for their support of these policies and are not real policemen or policewomen but puppets. The workload for the ordinary garda has increased incredibly and the changes within the job have not been supported with training or resources. The front line is under resourced. 786 Unsafe work place buildings , inadequate numbers, no training , no transparency in competitions , no management guidance , incompetent management, high demand non policing related issues, inadequate uniforms equipment and vehicles. 787 Mental health issues are not being addressed whatsoever. Non-existent post traumatic event debriefing or support. 788 We are currently been treated like dirt due to poor work conditions . Underpaid understaffed and undervalued. Extremely poor management. 789 Insufficient non existent de-briefing/stand down after attending serious traumatic incidents. 790 We're not appreciated by anyone. We're all alone. Lone wolves in a place full of worry, negativity, nastiness and limited opportunities. Appalling resources and endless surveys that are not doing any difference. 791 When something unfortunate or horrific management don't support members but neither do GRA. 792 My mental health is beginning to become a concern for me as a result of working this job. So much so that I would consider quitting. 793 Reduction in opportunities for lateral movement. 794 Feeling physically ill with the constant threat of discipline. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 110 795 There are simply not enough gardai. Not enough good supervisors. The equipment we use is dated and the vehicles the majority utilise are of a poor standard. Regular uniform, community policing and traffic corps are totally under resourced. Management have little or no trust in members and there are around 11 other agencies looking into how Gardaí do their jobs. The red tape and paperwork means the job has become about ticking boxes and less importance given to being out on beats or patrols. 796 Contacted my line manager to inform him of early pregnancy issues & that I had to go sick. Contacted by text message [ ]. That was at [ ] weeks, I'm now [ ] weeks & have been out sick since & he still hasn't [ ]. [ ]. 797 Management come from a time when policing was completely different. They don't understand the stresses and challenges of modern front line policing. There is no motivation to do the job right, the more work you do the higher your risk of discipline with absolutely no reward. There is also no consistency in policy from station to station. Management basically don't know how to manage this police force effectively and there aren't enough resources to spread the workload fairly. 798 Our job is totally under staffed, people are in positions they haven't got the skills for and are making work harde[r]. There [are] no canteens where I work, lunch/tea is taken at my desk & [x] toilets shared between approximately [x] females. There are no facilities, I was very badly bullied by a colleague & every superior ignored the issue as they were afraid to take the colleague on. We have no place to put our shoes / suit jackets & it is just a terrible atmosphere. Private sector would not accept. 799 Complete lack of appreciation by management for the role of those working on the ground, management obsessed with disciplining members whenever they can instead of offering help, support and understanding of difficulties members face and the poor morale caused by understaffing, poor resources and equipment. 800 Having no real system which triggers proper counselling etc as a result of traumatic incidents, ie. completely ad hoc, varying from division to division and requiring the opinion of someone completely removed from real working life. Should be triggered by immediate line supervisor. Far too much box ticking for services without real concern for affected members welfare/well being. 801 Having to fill out 3 forms to claim sub , no stinger in most cars, no ampr in most cars, uniform not fit for purpose. 802 Bullying by supervisors & lack of management responsibility still a major problem. Management are not learning from previous mistakes. Lack of operational and practical training. ECM complete waste of garda time and not fit for purpose. 803 Morale is on the floor and management keep forcing more and more changes upon us. There is also still the threat hanging over you that if you report your PTSD smptoms that you'll be overlooked for different roles and/or firearm taken from you. 804 Having recently changed roles from uniform to plain clothes, management took no consideration of my skills or experience and placed me in a completely inappropriate role, since then all my requests for a move have been ignored, have began having anxiety symptoms and feeling extremely down. 805 Workload, workload and workload. Expected to carry the workload for many investigations, and not being given a fraction of the time to complete them properly. Supervisors that cover there arses by saying I told him to this that and other, but when you say you don't have time, will patronise you about Time Management. 806 Stress from working on your own in a district head quarters and fear of sustaining injuries due to not having sufficient man power to assist. Not being able to get a transfer because I am not married or have children. Feeling like because of lack of transfer it has negatively impacted my personal life and stopped me mainting relationships due to distance because of lack ignorance transfers. Being in the one division for [>10] years. 807 It's improving somewhat as a result of recruitment. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 111 808 Having attended numerous scenes of murders dead bodies fatal accidents scenes of horrific nature, 23 years and still never been offered counselling. Peer Support options [are inadequate]. Anything you tell them will be heard back. Zero confidentiality so nobody tells anybody anything and nobody talks about traumatic scenarios. 809 Employee Assistance Scheme inadequate, [ ]. 810 Not paid enough, not enough backing from management and extremely under resourced. 811 It system and lack of modern equipment seriously impacting the job. Too much now expected of Garda and Sergeant rank. 812 Certain line managers are not adequately trained. They show a complete disinterest in the work I do. I'm trusted by my line manager to perform my work well but when I go to the line manager for any help or assistance in completing my work properly it's not forthcoming. I'm not looking for validation but the relationship is a " one way street " type of scenario. If something went wrong with my work the line manager would come down on me like a ton of bricks. 813 Completely disillusioned about the fairness of the promotion system. the unreasonable work load and the lack of training to deal with the workload but the attitude of bosses is generally suck it up princess and get on with it. I was a victim of bullying by an inspector as we're the other members of my unit. To deal with the problem, they promoted the person where the person concerned should of been sacked many times due to their history in the job. The victims get treated like lepers by bosses. 814 Working in an organisation that refuses to change is slowly killing the moral of its workforce. Implement all the recommendations in the previous inspectorates reports and that will be a start. 815 Lack of educational assistance with my core duties. I work in a specialist area and I obtained a [degree]. No financial assistance offered but financial assistance is available for an educational course not directly relevant to my core duties. Constant fire brigade service jumping from one job created emergency to another. Loss of qualified staff. [ ] of us on the [ ]/[ ]/18, [ ] left today. Loss of over [ ] combined degrees and 100 years of combined experience. Lack of basic facilities. 816 Supervisors unable to manage a unit. Wrong people getting promoted and then unable to do their job in supervising a unit. 817 "Work is frustrating because there is a very unclear path to self improvement. There is a chronic lack of continuing professional development and barriers are placed in your way for courses. it's feels like you have no control over the direction of your career. Location has a negative factor or your career. Currently I feel like I have a job not a career. I have suffered negative mental health issues directly related to being under trained at work and dealing with supervisors that are equally as [sic.]" 818 Management is atrocious in An Garda Síochána. 819 Poor pay. 820 Insufficient resources. Am constantly required to attend calls on my own. Constantly have to use my personal mobile phone. Regularly contacted on my days off. 821 More caution on duty as help 30 mins away, a lot can happen in 30 mins, have to consider own safety first, this may impact work decisions at the coal face. 822 Lack of any form of support after traumatic event. 24hr phone support service is not sufficient. After a traumatic incident I developed PTSD and was told by the state that they would not pay for counselling. Medical insurance would not cover it as trauma occurred on duty. Told to pay for it out of my own pocket. Seriously affected my life and work for the best part of a decade afterwards. Wasn't even invited to be assessed by [ ] over it. GRA WELLBEING SURVEY 2018 112 Garda Representative Association Wellbeing Survey 2018 Report Author: Dr Finian Fallon CPsychol MIACP Publisher: City Colleges, 38-40 Parliament Street, Dublin 2, Republic of Ireland. Contact: 00 353 (0)1 524 1606 Email: info@citycolleges.ie Web: http://www.citycolleges.ie/