Nearly one in five Calgary police officers is “currently on leave or accommodations,” according to a document included in the recent city council budget package.

The document, which was part of a preview of the 2026 Calgary city budget, indicated that many of those police officers are off due to physical or mental injuries.  It was mentioned as a part of the budget submission that included 21 previously approved officers and the inclusion of back-to-work coordinators to support the officers’ successful reintegration to the Calgary Police Service.

It includes six per cent of staff on full leave, with 13 per cent having accommodations.

(Editor’s note: The initial story had the headline showing 20 per cent of officers on leave, and the breakdown of leave and accommodation was provided after. The story has since been clarified.)

Separate statements from the Calgary Police Commission (CPC), and Calgary police Chief Katie McLellan acknowledged the issue and said they are committed to the health and wellness of members.

“We also recognize that leaves and accommodations, while essential to supporting the health and wellness of our members, can have a cascading impact across the Service by affecting staffing levels, operational capacity and team dynamics,” read the statement from Chief McLellan.

“We are actively investing in our people and working to strengthen and evolve our processes, including navigating these ripple effects. Supports and plans are also in place to help manage workload and maintain member wellness, while ensuring public safety is not compromised.”

CPC Chair Amtul Siddiqui said that they are well aware that Calgary needs more police officers, and the next four-year budget cycle will hopefully address that.

“The reason we are not asking for an adjustment to our already approved budget is because we’re committed to optimizing Calgary Police Service’s current workforce first,” her statement read.

“As we prepare for the next budget cycle (2027-2030), our focus over the next 12 months is to work with the Calgary Police Service to increase training capacity and reduce the number of officers on leave through improved back-to-work supports.”

Siddiqui said that while the rate is higher than it has been in previous years, it is consistent with national trends in policing, due to occupational stress and burnout.

LWC attempted to contact the union via the email on their webpage, but did not receive a response.

Currently, there are 3,242 full-time equivalent employees with CPS, with 2,334 officers.

Accommodations may include not working night shifts, medical driving restrictions, being restricted to counter work, or other such measures.

Concerning for first responders: Mayor Gondek

Calgary’s Mayor Jyoti Gondek said she expects the CPC to explain how the issue is going to be addressed.

“Any time we are seeing a proportion of the workforce, especially when it is first responders, being off for various reasons, it is concerning,” she said.

For the past several years, citizens have been calling for increased public safety measures, particularly in the downtown. The CPC and CPS had put forward a plan to add more officers over the most recent four-year budget cycle. That was put in jeopardy with the province’s decision to cut to photo radar, until the City of Calgary decided to backstop the $28 million shortfall.

Still, even with more money, the CPC said that it couldn’t hire more officers, according to the budget memo. They cited a lack of physical space and the appropriate trainers. Previously, LWC reported that CPS had seen a drop in recruit applications.

“To be blunt – the Calgary Police Service is not able to recruit, train and equip more officers than it is already expecting to hire,” the memo read.

Ward 2 Coun. Jennifer Wyness, who sits on the Calgary Police Commission, said they’re currently working on the processes to support the officers in need, while finding a way to hire more.

“When we say we don’t have enough police officers to respond to the call volumes are coming in is because we’re losing officers to the mental health crisis,” she said.

“We’re trying to hire as fast as we can, but the systems in place are not there to bring people into a cycle that needs to be broken. This is why commission is taking the time to unpack the systematic problems in the organization to solve this problem, so that when we hire someone who wants to become a police officer, we are not putting them in a trauma cycle.”