A review into the police force is suggesting that officers take an annual fitness test and that their salary is reduced if they do not pass.
At the moment officers only take a fitness test when they enter the force, as an indication of whether they will be able to handle the physical demands of the job. After that initial test no further ones are required, even if an officer spends his whole career within the police force.
The author of the review, Tim Windsor, said that it was surprising that officers’ physical well-being was not tested more frequently.
“I think the public will be surprised that after passing a fitness test at the point of entry, except in special units like firearms, physical fitness is not tested again in a 30, 35-year career.”
According to the report’s authors, it is not only in officers’ interest to stay healthy but also in the interest of the public.
In the report it is shown that it is not uncommon for police officers to struggle with their weight. The report’s figures indicate that 52% of all Met male officers are overweight. Furthermore, 22% are obese and one in 100 are “morbidly obese”.
Female Met officers also struggle with staying fit, with 32% being overweight, 16% classified as being obese, and 2% considered to be “morbidly obese”.
Professionals reason that the requirement on police officers to stay healthy and in shape will make sense for most. Sir Edward Crew, former West Midlands Chief Constable, worked on the report and said that, “We are not looking for supermen”, and further that most officers would look positively at the measures and see them “as a necessary protection for themselves and the public”.
Fitness is a central part of some jobs. For example, members of the Army are required to undertake a yearly fitness test in order to ensure that their body can take the pressure of the missions they may be sent on.
Tests looking at employees’ physical fitness are designed to ensure that they are fit enough to carry out their job duties and that the physical pressure is not harming them.
What are your experiences on jobs and fitness requirements?
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