POLICE STAFF PAY TALKS TO TAKE PLACE IN SEPTEMBER
Negotiations over this year’s pay award for police staff in England and Wales are unlikely to take place until September. The reason for this lies in the expected timing of the government’s decision on the pay rise for police officers for 2024.
It is anticipated that the Home Secretary will confirm next week whether the government accepts the recommendation of the Police Remuneration Review Body for this year’s police officer pay award. This recommendation has not been made public pending the Home Secretary’s decision.
The police officer pay award is an important one for the police staff pay negotiations, because, since 2000, police staff have never received a pay award below that of their officer colleagues.
Once the government has confirmed the police officer pay award, the Employers Side of the Police Staff Council will then consult chief constables and police and crime commissioners on the implications of the officer award for the police staff pay rise. This consultation will take place over August. Negotiations will then begin in September.
The police staff pay rise is due on 1 September each year, so this timetable means that there will be a delay to implementation, which the unions will do our best to limit.
THIS YEAR’S PAY CLAIM
The pay claim which the unions submitted on behalf of police staff this year is as follows:
-One year pay claim
-A guarantee that no pay points will fall below the Joseph Rowntree real living wage during the 2024/25 pay year.
-An increase of 10% on all pay points
-An increase of 10% on standby allowance and overnight away from home allowance
-A variable increase in the value of pay points 9 – 23 to make each incremental step worth £650 creating more equal steps up the lower pay points of the PSC pay spine; this adjustment to be applied prior, and in addition, to the 10% increase