Nine out of ten officers say Force morale is low
11 January 2023
Almost nine out of ten West Midlands Police Federation members believe the Force is struggling with poor morale, according to a new report.
Findings from the Police Federation’s latest national pay and morale survey were published today (Wednesday 11 January) and revealed that 88 per cent of West Midlands respondents felt morale across the Force was either low or very low.
The survey also found more than half (55 per cent) reported having low or very low personal morale.
More than a third (37 per cent) said that they found their job very or extremely stressful and more than eight out of ten (82 per cent) have experienced feelings of stress, low mood, anxiety or other difficulties with their health and wellbeing over the last 12 months.
Fourteen per cent of respondents intend to resign in the next two years or as soon as they can and blamed morale (98 per cent), how police officers are treated by the Government (96 per cent) and pay (93 per cent) for their decision to quit.
Pay remains a major concern among West Midlands Police officers with 86 per cent either dissatisfied or very dissatisfied with their overall remuneration including basic pay and allowances.
Almost all respondents (98 per cent) reported that their cost of living had increased in the last month, with an increase in the price of their food shop being the most cited reason, and 88 per cent said they were worse off financially than they were five years ago.
Nearly two out of ten (18 per cent) said they never or almost never had enough money to cover all their essentials.
The survey also found:
- 96 per cent of respondents do not feel respected by the Government
- 69 per cent would not recommend joining the police to others
- 71 per cent do not not feel valued within the police service
West Midlands Police Federation chair Rich Cooke: “No one in the job will be surprised by the findings of this survey but they should still be a cause of massive concern for the National Police Chiefs’ Council and Government, not least because things appear to be getting worse rather than better.
“Pay and pensions denigration are impacting hugely on my colleagues. We cannot go out on strike, therefore we should absolutely be able to negotiate our own pay through a collective bargaining process, in addition to binding arbitration.
“We’re not asking for much. You’ll never see police officers on picket lines but, in return, our members deserve fair reward for the stressful, and often very dangerous, work they do.
“They have suffered a huge real-term cut in wages over the last 12 years with yearly real reductions becoming normalised. Constables, who constitute around 80 per cent of the workforce, have suffered a reversal equating to almost a third in the value of their pay.
“This level of drop in standard of living is unprecedented and, combined with a retail prices index (RPI) nearing 20 per cent in 12 months, we are all feeling this erosion of lifestyle acutely, with increasing numbers struggling and having to work excessive, unhealthy over-time to make ends meet and to continue to provide a service to the public.
“That has an inevitable impact on officer morale and wellbeing and the whole thing becomes a vicious circle which adversely affects the service we deliver.”
A total of 1,609 West Midlands Police Federation members took part in the survey which represents a response rate of around 21 per cent.
The survey findings will be presented to chief constables, ministers and other stakeholders as part of the Federation’s campaign for better pay and conditions and further improvements to the police service.
