Queensland Police Union Journal

International Police Perspectives
CRTP was a pensionable payment
which officers had paid pension
contributions to since 2006. When it is
phased out it will no longer form part
of the pension, so officers have paid
over $3,000 for nothing.
The government recently announced
changes to the police pension scheme,
moving it from a final salary scheme
to an average salary scheme, and
increasing the years of contribution to
receive a full pension from 30 years to
35 years.
They also increased pension
contributions to 13.5% of salary. Taken
together, these three changes mean
that officers will be receiving between
30 and 50% less when they retire.
The government and Winsor also
introduced a two year freeze on pay
progression and increments. At the
end of the freeze, officers will go onto
the pay or increment point that they
were on before the freeze, rather than
where they should have been.
“The government
has tasked
police and crime
commissioners with
reducing their force
size by around 20%.”
This equates to a loss of approximately
$30,000 over a 35 year career.
The government has tasked police and
crime commissioners with reducing
their force size by around 20%. This
will have the effect of putting extra
pressure on the remaining officers and
will surely lead to an increase in crime.
As part of their contract of
employment, officers agreed to the
‘A19 clause’. A19 basically means that
your force can sever your contract
after you have completed 30 years
service, regardless of your age.
Officers who joined the force at 20
and planned their lives and finances
around a 40 year career are finding
that they are being forcibly retired
after 30 years, without any leave for
appeal.
Would any of you like to join the police
in the UK?
INDUSTRIAL RIGHTS
In order for the police in the UK to take
industrial action, there would need
to be a change in primary legislation,
which would have to pass through the
House of Commons, House of Lords,
and finally receive royal assent from
your Queen.
At the Police Federation of England
and Wales’ Conference last year,
the Home Secretary Theresa May,
who has overall responsibility for
the police, stated that under no
circumstances would that happen.
Nevertheless, we felt that it was such
an important issue that we balloted
our members on whether they wished
us to seek a legislative vehicle to allow
us to begin the process of changing
the primary legislation. To our
surprise, only about 45% of officers
voted ‘yes’.
As Union Reps and Executive
members in Australia, you are in a
much better position than we are. But
you must get this message over to
your members: there is a lot of pain
coming and you have got to face it
head on.
With a nod to the Holocaust quote by
Niemoller: don’t wait for the brown
stuff to hit the fan before you involve
the Union.
Get involved now, and fight the
fight for officers who are less
knowledgeable or less robust than
you. Ask not what the Union can do
for you, but what you can do for the
Union.
“Officers who joined the force at 20 and
planned their lives and finances around a 40
year career are finding that they are being
forcibly retired after 30 years.”
Mark Twain is credited with
popularising the phrase, ‘There are
three types of lies; lies, damn lies, and
statistics’.
I’ll tell you that there are three types of
lies: lies, damn lies, and politics.
If my experience of the government
in the UK is anything to go by, then
the government are not your friends.
They do not have your back, and they
will shaft you if you give them the
opportunity.
They do not care about you and the
community you serve. They only
care about themselves. Likewise, the
opposition are not your friends. When
they are in power, they will also try to
shaft you!
“Your only friend in
times of trouble in
the workplace is a
strong Union.”
Your only friend in times of trouble in
the workplace is a strong Union. You
are fortunate that you have one. If you
allow politicians and senior managers
to divide you, they will conquer you.
You have to stay united.
Queensland Police Union Journal June 2013
45