Conference Report 2016

Section 1: Pay and Allowances
5.10 Having regard to this reality the Association
proposes that this Review enables an appropriate
uprating of Garda pay in the form of an allowance in
recognition of the many unique features associated
with the job of policing. There is already a pertinent
precedent for such an allowance (in the Defence
Forces) and this Association believes that a Police
Service Allowance would serve to compensate
Garda personnel for the special disadvantages
associated with police life.
5.11 However, despite this ‘unique’ status, there is some
substance to the conclusion of the 1979 Ryan
Committee of Inquiry, which contended that:
“The pay of members of the Force cannot be totally
divorced from increases in pay achieved in outside
employment generally.”
5.12 The Sheehy Report (in Britain) reiterated this view:
“…it is difficult to establish market comparisons
across the whole range of duties at police constable
level. Subject to various special factors…we
nonetheless believe it is possible to establish broad
market comparisons in respect of basic pay.”
5.13 Eventually this Inquiry opted for a police pay
benchmark set at the median of private sector pay,
subject to the acknowledgment of ‘policing as a
profession’. Consequently the Inquiry deemed it
inappropriate to compare police officers to manual
workers for pay or any other purpose; thus resorting
to a link with the median of the ‘white collar’ private
sector pay distribution. The British Government
subsequently accepted this (non-manual) private
sector pay benchmark as constituting the formula
for the annual uprating of police pay. In the view of
the then British Home Secretary:
“This linkage recognises both the professionalism
of the police service and its special nature, which
justifies the comparison with settlements in the
private sector.”
5.14 The Department of Justice has recognised the
‘unique’ character of the Garda’s job, accepting that
‘there is no strictly comparable group’, thus
necessitating an examination of ‘a wide range of
employments’ to facilitate the pay determination
process.
5.15 The Association accepts that such is the nature of
the industrial relations process and employees’
perceptions to the equity of their pay level. In
addition to compensation for the ‘unique’ status
associated with the rank’s role, account should also
be taken of the garda’s relative pay compared with
employees in general, with other public service
employees and internal relativities.
Impoverished Gardaí – the bottom line
5.16 A sizeable proportion of gardaí are in the 30 to 45
age bracket when financial obligations are
especially onerous. The General Secretary of this
Association has clarified Garda ‘income’ matters for
the benefit of the Public Accounts Committee:
“It is also important to say that there is a great deal
of frustration among young gardaí, particularly
those with about eight or nine years’ service, who
hear again through the media that the average pay
they receive is in the region of €53,000.
“I have a payslip here that reflects the pay of about
80% of the members I represent and it can be sent
to the Chairman, if that is what he requires. The pay
of a member of the Garda Síochána – it can be
clearly shown – is €46,631 for a member with nine
years’ service – it is not €53,480. They get very
annoyed and aggrieved when this kind of wage
average is put out in the public arena.”
5.17 Whilst some of the desperation and disillusionment
currently associated with working as a garda may
be attributed to the recent recession and
associated cutbacks, it should not be forgotten that
gardaí were poorly served under the first Public
Sector Benchmarking Body’s report. As a
consequence, gardaí secured a 5% award in
comparison with an overall average increase of 9%.
Given the longstanding and wide scale focus on
internal relativities, this award was aggravated by
the fact that garda sergeants (6%), inspectors (6%),
superintendents (16%) and chief superintendents
(16.1%) received superior awards.
5.18 The basic pay scale for members of Garda rank
spans from €23,171 to €46,000 per annum. It is
appropriate to acknowledge that such payments
tend to accrue from onerous duties, after working
nights, working weekends and working compulsory
overtime; duties undertaken in all kinds of inclement
weather conditions, with the real and increasing risk
of being assaulted or abused and enduring lifelong
or life-threatening physical or psychological injury.
The enduring case for supplementary payments for
the rank are further addressed.
38th Annual Delegate Conference
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