Poor pay and treatment pushing officers towards resignation

20 March 2024

Polfed News

Latest Pay and Morale Survey reveals high levels of discontent amongst undervalued police officers with many planning to quit as pay lags significantly behind other public sector workers.

More than one in five police officers are planning on quitting the police service, with 78 per cent highlighting poor government treatment as the influencing factor. 

Findings from the Police Federation of England and Wales’ Pay and Morale Survey, published today [20 March], revealed low morale is increasingly impacting retention with 22 per cent of respondents expressing intentions to resign within the next two years or ‘as soon as they can’. 

Workload remains problematic, with levels unsustainable to the point of officers being unable to take the breaks they are due and 86 per cent do not feel that there are enough officers to meet the demands of their team or unit. 33 per cent of respondents ‘always’ or ‘often’ felt pressured into working long hours over the last 12 months.

Three quarters (78 per cent) are ‘dissatisfied’ or ‘very dissatisfied’ with their overall remuneration (including basic pay and allowances). While 18 per cent reported never having enough money to cover their essentials.

The survey also found rates of physical and verbal abuse from the public are high and officers are not getting the equipment and support they need. Only 27 per cent of respondents reported having access to double crewing ‘at all times’.

Additionally, more than 1 in 10 (15 per cent) reported they had suffered one or more injuries that required medical attention as a result of work-related violence in the last year and 34 per cent have suffered verbal insults at least once per week over the past 12 months.

PFEW is insisting the Government to take into account the restrictions and limitations put on police officers, the risks they face on a day-to-day basis and for pay to compensate this as part of our ongoing fair pay campaign. 

The organisation is taking action to address a number of areas based on the findings of the survey, including but not limited to: uprating allowances, types of leave, the P-factor and pay awards and the PRRB process.

PFEW National Chair Steve Hartshorn said: “This is an issue, primarily, about fairness.

“While the PFEW is not participating in the PRRB process, it is important our work continues to highlight the economic hardship being experienced by police officers and to influence decision makers about the need for fair pay awards that take account of the unique status of officers, the restrictions on their private and professional lives, and the increased costs of living they face.

“Policing is an increasingly dangerous profession, with nearly 41,149 assaults recorded on police officers for the year ending June 2023, an increase of 49.1 per cent from June 2018. Rates of physical violence from the public remain high, with 11 per cent of officers having faced unarmed physical attacks (e.g., wrestling, hitting, kicking) at least once per week in the past 12 months.

“Officers are at risk from injuries on the job, with also 11 per cent of respondents reporting they had suffered one or more injuries that required medical attention as a result of work-related accidents in the last year.

“Yet research demonstrates that, on average, federated ranks’ real pay declined by 20.2 per cent between September 2010 and December 2023. An independent report on the state of police pay by the Social Market Foundation (SMF) highlighted a substantial decline in real-terms police pay in the UK since 2000, making the police an outlier compared to similar roles and public sector workers. Police officers’ pay is also lower in comparison to most economic sectors, drastically so in several cases. The stark differences show police officers’ work has not been properly valued in comparison to these other roles.

“In addition to taking account of the physical and psychological impacts of policing on individuals, problems such as burnout, stress and suicide need to be taken seriously by the Government in relation to a long-term funding model and the next pay award.

“The P-Factor, (a payment specifically for police officers) should be an addition to police pay structures, remunerating officers for the harm they may encounter while carrying out their duties among other restrictions.

“It is there to address a series of unique issues experienced by police officers, and independent research agrees with this positioning. To help the Government understand these unique challenges to policing, PFEW is undertaking its own review of the P-Factor design and formula to support our campaigning on this matter.

“PFEW has also taken action to influence allowance policies for fair remuneration, specifically, the away from home overnight and hardship allowance policy suggestion has been shared with the NPCC National Reward Team (NRT) in September 2023 with a view to seeking their views. PFEW is also campaigning for a rate increase within the existing Dog Handler’s Allowance. We are also taking into account where allowance uplifts should be prioritised according to our research and are in the process of writing to the NRT setting out a number of potential areas for improvement to members' terms and conditions on family leave type provisions.

“Aside from pay and government treatment, trauma suffered by frontline service workers is becoming increasingly recognised as an issue in various sectors. The survey findings highlight some of the impacts this is having on police officers such as burnout, stress and sadly also suicide, with 82 per cent of respondents indicating they had experienced feelings of stress, low mood, anxiety or other difficulties with their health and wellbeing over the last 12 months.

“The vast majority (93 per cent) said these feelings of stress, low mood, anxiety or other difficulties had been caused, or made worse, by work, with ‘workload being too high’ (39 per cent) and ‘having a poor work/life balance’ (34 per cent) being cited as the most common reasons. We know the quality of support offered by forces is a mixed picture and this must be improved and standardised as a matter of urgency.

“Exasperating these issues further, the survey has shown a third of respondents were unable to take the annual leave they were entitled to, and 63 per cent have had rest days cancelled. Almost two-thirds (64 per cent) have had at least one request for annual leave refused in the past 12 months. This is unsustainable and forces must do better to enable officers to take the time they need to rest.

“There is also learning here for improvements to the progression and development processes, 40 per cent of respondents reported being ‘dissatisfied’ or ‘very dissatisfied’ with opportunities for training and 48 per cent reported being ‘dissatisfied’ or ‘very dissatisfied’ with the Professional Development Review process.

"These figures are not indicative of a system supporting and developing our members, it demonstrates that they are being failed. In addition, 51 per cent of officers not applying for promotion, said it was not worth it for the excessive pressures and responsibility, while 46 per cent said it was not worth the salary on offer. These results are saddening, as so many officers with great leadership potential are clearly not taking that next step up.

“There is also a large gap between what officers want and what they have access to when it comes to equipment and safety procedures. Only 58 per cent of respondents reported having access to spit guards ‘at all times’ whilst on duty, compared to 82 per cent who would like to. Double crewing figures above remain shockingly low.

“Poor morale, poor pay, tough working conditions and sustained abuse from the public is having a significant impact on the life satisfaction and mental health of police officers. It is reported at a staggeringly low average of 5.2 out of 10 for police officers. This is far below that of the general public at an average of 7.5.

“These figures should be standing out to the Government, 85 per cent feel that they are not fairly paid given the hazards they face within their job, up from 78 per cent in 2018, 92 per cent of respondents feel they are not fairly paid given the stresses and strains of their job, up from 88 per cent in 2018 and 91 per cent of respondents feel morale within the police service is low.

“The survey findings ultimately demonstrate the need for committed action, and a vote for the members to make a decision around whether they want to seek greater industrial rights, specifically collective bargaining and binding arbitration in relation to pay and conditions will be held as soon as is practicable this year.”

Other findings include: 

• 95 per cent said how the police are treated by the Government had a negative impact on their morale.
• 81 per cent said their pay had a negative impact on their morale. 
• 73 per cent said they would not recommend joining the police to others. 
• 91 per cent of respondents feel that morale within the police service is currently ‘low’ or ‘very low’.
• 71 per cent said they did not feel valued within the police.
• 86 per cent said they do not feel there are enough officers to meet the demands of their team or unit.
• 64 per cent said their workload has been ‘too high’ or ‘much too high’ over the last 12 months. 
• 22 per cent of respondents told us that they had an intention to resign from the police service either ‘within the next two years’ or ‘as soon as [they] can.’ The most frequently cited reasons being how the Police are treated by the government and the impact of the job on their mental health and wellbeing.
• 82 per cent of respondents indicated they had experienced feelings of stress, low mood, anxiety or other problems with their mental health and wellbeing.
• 85 per cent of respondents feel they are not fairly paid given the hazards they face within their job, up from 78 per cent in 2018.
• 92 per cent of respondents feel they are not fairly paid given the stresses and strains of their job, up from 88 per cent in 2018.
• 85 per cent of respondents felt they were ‘worse off’ financially than they were five years ago.
• 18 per cent reported never having enough money to cover all their essentials.

The full report is available to read here.

 

Notes:

In 2021, PFEW formally withdrew from the Police Remuneration Review Body, (PRRB) the public body providing advice to the Government on pay and conditions for police officers at or below the rank of chief superintendent because of what it consider to be unfairness and a lack of independence in the current system. The Government appoints the PRRB chair, sets its annual remit and has full discretion to accept or reject its recommendations.

At the same time, there is no scope for negotiating with the Government, challenging decisions, or taking poor offers to any form of arbitration. PFEW strongly believes this system fails to give police officers a legitimate voice and leaves them in an unacceptably weak position when it comes to negotiating their pay and conditions.

The PFEW Pay and Morale Survey 2023 launched on 6 November 2023 and closed on 11 December 2023. Responses were received from 29,085 police officers, 28,070 responses after data cleansing.

The findings from the Pay and Morale Survey 2023 will provide strategically important evidence to support PFEW’s ongoing national pay campaign, calling for fair remuneration for police officers, and an independent pay mechanism. 

It also provides accurate and timely information on the current state of police morale and wellbeing, helping to inform and drive forward policies to support officers. 

The Pay and Morale Survey, conducted by PFEW's in-house Research Department and co-branded with independent researchers The Social Market Foundation (SMF), remains the sole consistent national survey that accurately represents members' perspectives on pay and working conditions. 

 

POLICE FEDERATION OF ENGLAND AND WALES

The Police Federation of England and Wales (PFEW) is the staff association for police constables, sergeants, inspectors (including chief inspectors), and special constables.

PFEW has been successfully representing officers and influencing the policing agenda for over 100 years, having first established in 1919. Voicing the views of more than 145,000 rank and file police officers, PFEW is the official body that exists to represent and support police officers on issues such as pay, allowances, terms and conditions, as well as advising and lobbying on operational policing issues and influencing legislation. It also provides training on equality, promotion, discipline, and health and safety.

 

SOCIAL MARKET FOUNDATION

The Social Market Foundation (SMF) is a non-partisan think tank. We believe that fair markets, complemented by open public services, increase prosperity and help people to live well. We conduct research and run events looking at a wide range of economic and social policy areas, focusing on economic prosperity, public services and consumer markets. The SMF is resolutely independent, and the range of backgrounds and opinions among our staff, trustees and advisory board reflects this.