Police ‘cannot take any more’

The second part of Tom Winsor’s review of police pay and conditions, published on 15 March, proposes long-term changes in addition to the shorter-term measures proposed in Part 1 (see Workplace Report, January 2012).

If accepted it will affect recruitment to the police service, bring lower starting salaries, introduce performance-related pay and replace the long-standing Police Negotiating Board with a pay review body. The report is now being considered by the Home Secretary, Theresa May.

Paul McKeever, chair of the Police Federation of England and Wales, said officers had had enough of “the deliberate, sustained attack on them by this government”, adding that with the cuts, falling police numbers and the pay freeze the service “cannot take any more”.

Police staff are also affected but it will be up to union negotiators to decide whether they agree or disagree with any proposals referred to the staff negotiating machinery as a result of the Winsor review.

Key points of part 2 are:

• pay directed towards those who work hardest, reductions in take-home pay for others;

• shorter pay scales, appraisal-based progression, abolition of Competence threshold;

• annual fitness test, loss of pay/dismissal after one/two years on restricted duties;

• a power akin to compulsory severance;

• skills-based pay, expertise and professional accreditation allowance;

• pension age 60 for officers;

• fast track direct entry to inspector rank (staff and officers);

• harmonisation of officer and staff roles; and

• no national pay grading for staff.