Rotterdam center police team leaders resign

The two team leaders of the Rotterdam-Centre base team are retiring from the police. They do this following the revelations about the ‘socially unsafe working climate’ in the NRC this week.

“With all the chaos that has arisen over the past week, we cannot contribute to constructive change,” the bosses said. They said they had made the decision to stop work. Both will stop on September 1.

NRC write earlier this week about the results of an internal investigation into work culture. These decisions were already known to the police in June.

Complaints about sexism and racism came to the fore. There were also reports of sexual misconduct, bullying, drinking and excessive street violence. Rotterdam police chief Westerbeke said he was shock it was because of the results.

The management of the unit believes that the departure of the two is a good step, but they regret that “it was not possible to create a safer working environment together.”

There have been complaints about the team at the Rotterdam Centre, where around 230 officers work, for a long time.

Westerbeke, which has been done several times excuses who had to deal with racism at the Rotterdam police, said on Tuesday that all conclusions and recommendations from the report are accepted. It is recommended, among other things, to improve the leadership style and to work on dealing with discrimination.