The Pittsburgh Police Bureau adequately staffed the Beyonce concert but the way it was done has triggered an unfair labor practice complaint.
Fraternal Order of Police local President Robert Swartzwelder told Pittsburgh’s Action News 4 Tuesday afternoon that “a large percentage” of officers working overtime for Beyonce traffic duty are being “forced to do so.”
The union local president said a total of 32 officers were assigned to Beyonce traffic duty. Thirteen of those were being pulled from their police zones to work the traffic details within their shifts. The other 19 were being kept late or called in early on overtime for traffic duties at end of the concert.
Fourteen officers working inside Heinz Field for the Beyonce concert are on voluntary secondary employment. Four additional police positions went unfilled because no one would volunteer.
The Pittsburgh Post Gazette reports that the Beyone concert ticket “was not a hard ticket to come by” with 25 of the side sections closed off.