The Fleet, Supply and Weapon Services Bureau employs approximately 140 people who work behind the scenes to manage all the Ontario Provincial Police vehicles, uniforms, weapons, and general equipment. Throughout the pandemic, these employees have reported to their workplace every day to ensure that the OPP officers can provide care for their community with up-to-date equipment and uniforms.
Essential Work During a Pandemic
Jackie Reilly, Acting Deputy Director at the Fleet, Supply and Weapon Services Bureau for the Ontario Provincial Police, could not be more proud of the work her team has done. “These folks, they are all civilians, and they have worked throughout COVID-19, because it’s not possible for them to work from home. They can’t take vehicles home, they can’t take guns home, they can’t take the uniforms home. And we have 6,500 uniform personnel that require these services because they are still out there every day protecting the people of Ontario.” she continues, “I always like to think that because we’re such a critical component and we touch every single person in the OPP.”
The bureau employs forty mechanics who build police cars and specialty vehicles such as motorcycles, boats and ATVS. As these essential operations run 24 hours 7 days a week, the bureau had to develop strict safety protocols to keep them running. “We did social distancing, masks and sanitizing, all that kind of stuff. We adjusted shifts, or people accommodated so that we didn’t have a mass of people coming into the garage at one time. Everything was wiped down.” shares Reilly.
Along with caring for vehicles, the bureau must ensure that officers have their uniforms, and with recently hiring their largest number of recruit classes ever – 145 recruits – it’s not exactly a straightforward task, especially during the era of social distancing. The uniform that is made for the officers of the OPP are unique in that most articles of clothing are designed to fit the recruit according to their exact measurements. Reilly shares, “It’s completely different to how a pair of jeans fit or a pair of sneakers. We also have peaked caps, who’s ever worn a peaked cap except for the military?”