Chair reacts to reports of a 5 per cent pay rise for officers

24 July 2024

The chair of West Mercia Police Federation has reacted to reports that police officers are in line for a five per cent pay rise.

Steve Butler has commented on a report from The Telegraph that suggests the Police Remuneration Review Body (PRRB) is set to recommend the five per cent pay award which, if agreed by the Government, would come into effect in September.

And the rise, which is more than double the rate of inflation, would be ‘a positive step forward’ according to Steve.

“If this report is correct, then officers could receive a five per cent pay rise - which the Federation would definitely welcome,” said Steve.

“The latest Pay and Morale Survey results made it very clear that pay plays a huge role in poor morale here at West Mercia. Eighty one per cent of respondents, in fact, said they are ‘dissatisfied’ or ‘very dissatisfied’ with their overall remuneration, which includes basic pay and allowances.

“In addition, 90 per cent of respondents revealed that their cost of living had increased, with 84 per cent arguing that they were worse off financially than they were five years ago.

“So I’m pleased to see that steps are being taken to improve police pay. It’s only right that the wages of police officers truly reflect the jobs they do - a job like no other that sees them going out and risking their lives on a daily basis to protect members of the public.”

Steve explained that during the austerity years, police officers received pay rises below inflation, which decreased their salaries in real terms.

Real-term pay cut

He said: “According to research funded by the Federation, police officers received, on average, a 20 per cent real-term cut in their pay cut since 2000. Hopefully, if this report is accurate, it will be a positive step forward for policing. And, better still, help us attract and retain officers at what is an extremely difficult time for cops.”

The Police Federation of England and Wales (PFEW) no longer makes a submission to PRRB, saying it is not fit for purpose and does not offer an independent pay award mechanism.

After a nationwide survey, members have called on the Police Federation to campaign for industrial rights – specifically for a fair process of collective bargaining and binding arbitration - after a nationwide poll.

“We would still like to see a new system put in place for determining our pay,” continued Steve.

“It’s no surprise that officers are losing patience with the current system - we want to see the introduction of collective bargaining and without binding arbitration, we are left at the whim of the Government of the day.”

We will give a full report on the PRRB recommendations when the report is published.