Police pay rise 'not a moment too soon' says federation

Earlier this week it was confirmed that all ranks of police will receive a 4.75 per cent pay rise from September.

It comes after a period of sustained concern voiced by police federations across the country, with police balloted on whether the law should be changed to allow them to take strike action – a move that is currently illegal.

The decision to approve the pay rise comes after the new Labour government accepted recommendations from the Police Pay Review Body and Senior Salaries Review Body.

West Mercia Police Federation's branch secretary, Pete Nightingale has welcomed the decision – but said more needs to be done to reach the 'pay levels that officers deserve'.

He said police pay has fallen behind by 17 per cent in real terms since 2010.

He added: “The news this week will be a relief for many of my colleagues who are struggling to pay their monthly bills and put food on the table – however we know that police pay is still way below where it should be.

"The feelings of our officers were shown very clearly in the Federation's recent Pay and Morale survey, which found that 81 per cent of West Mercia officers surveyed are unhappy with their pay and allowances and 84 per cent feel worse off today than five years ago.

“So, we will continue to make the case to the new Government that, whilst this uplift is a good start, there is more to do, including reforming the pay review process.”

The national Police Federation removed itself from the Police Remuneration Review Body (PRRB) as it does not allow for negotiation, only the imposition of a fixed pay award.

A recent poll also saw almost 98 per cent of officers supported the Federation’s call for a return to collective bargaining with binding arbitration.

Calum Macleod, National Secretary of the Police Federation of England and Wales (PFEW), added: “While we don’t believe that one group of public sector workers should be set against another, the pay review body recommendation shows that they do not understand policing and its needs.

“Poor pay and morale means police officers aren’t staying in the force and we are losing valuable experience from the service. The Federation is right to sit outside a process which does not recognise the role that police officers perform in society and the risks they take.”