Collective Bargaining Will 'Redress Broken Promises'
10 July 2024
Police officers have voted to pursue collective bargaining on pay to redress the broken promises of government to be treated fairly, according to City of London Police Federation.
More than 50,000 officers responded to a poll run by the Police Federation of England and Wales asking them whether they should pursue negotiation with binding arbitration when determining police pay.
And an astonishing 97.7% of those polled agreed that the PFEW should pursue such rights.
Mike Reed, Chair of City of London Police Federation, urged the new Government to install a truly independent process for deciding police pay.
He said: “The result of the recent survey shows an undoubting desire from Federation members that they wish to have better recourse to year upon year of negative or minimal pay appreciation by the previous Government.
“Although the last Government billed itself as the party of law and order, this could not have been further from the truth –in terms of funding for police forces, but also the pay and conditions of hardworking police officers who face increasingly complex crimes and the willingness and ease with which the public use violence against them.
“This sentiment of wanting a degree of industrial rights could easily have been avoided by previous governments if the uniqueness of the office of constable was recognised as promised. This includes the X Factor – that pay reviews would recognise the demands placed on police officers’ private lives and their inability to actively be involved in politics.
“There was no honour in the way the previous Government moved away from their side of this deal. But police officers had no option but to continue to uphold their side and go out each day to protect the public.
“It is therefore little surprise that officers up and down the country now seek to have industrial rights to redress the broken promises to be treated fairly and recognised as different because of the sacrifices, demands and reduction in their rights.
“My plea to the new Government is to allow what is billed as an independent review process for police pay is allowed to be that. This would mean the simple and practical measure of removing the constraints of the pay review body by not issuing a remit letter for this year's upcoming pay review.
“It will be interesting to see the response of the new Government, whose history sits behind labour rights, respond to the results and the clear indication that policing has had enough of being everybody's scapegoat.”
Calum Macleod, PFEW National Secretary, added: “This strong mandate from the membership sets us up to negotiate with the new government a fair and binding pay mechanism.
“Thank you to those who participated. PFEW’s National Council and National Board will begin creating a campaign for the introduction of a fair and binding pay mechanism on the behalf of our members.
“We realise a political agreement to change process can take time, but a new Government allows us the opportunity to take a fresh view on those issues that matter most to our members. We will keep you updated with progress.”
The poll, which ran from 3-21 June for Federated members, received 50,103 responses, with 97.7% in favour of wanting PFEW to campaign for collective bargaining with binding arbitration.
