La Grange approves one‑year 12‑hour police shift pilot under side letter with FOP

The Village of La Grange Board of Trustees voted unanimously to authorize a one‑year pilot program moving patrol officers to a 12‑hour shift schedule under a side letter agreement with the Illinois Fraternal Order of Police.

Trustee O'Brien described the existing schedule and reasons for the pilot, saying the change is intended to improve officer work‑life balance, recruitment and retention. The pilot will run from Jan. 14, 2024 through Jan. 11, 2025; provisions include an 80‑hour per 14‑day schedule (six 12‑hour shifts and one 8‑hour shift in a 14‑day cycle), pay and annual FLSA hours set to 2,080, overtime paid for hours beyond 80 in a 14‑day period, and no roll‑call compensation (roll call is budgeted elsewhere). The side letter allows either party to notify the other in writing by Nov. 1, 2024 if it seeks to end the pilot at its conclusion.

Trustees expressed general support and thanked department leadership. President Kugler noted officers were looking forward to more weekends at home. No trustee opposition was recorded and the resolution passed unanimously.

Staff said the pilot will be monitored during 2024 to ensure public‑safety needs are met and to evaluate impacts on overtime, training and staffing. Any return to the existing schedule would occur if the union or village notified the other as specified in the side letter and the parties would revert to the collective bargaining terms if the pilot ended.

Next steps: staff will implement the side letter scheduling changes with the department and report monitoring results to the board during 2024.