Police officers in Scotland are taking a stand against a pay offer they believe “shows contempt” for their hard work. Traditionally, Scottish officers are prohibited by law from taking industrial action. But in a concerted move, they have decided to withdraw their goodwill, meaning they will stop working at the scheduled time and not start early. This decision comes hand-in-hand with a 4.75% pay offer rather than the 5.7% increase they were hoping for. They will begin this action on Friday 1 November at 17:00.
The Scottish Police Federation (SPF), the body that represents rank and file officers, said this move was taken out of “sheer disappointment”. SPF has long been in dispute with bosses, particularly in relation to pay and conditions, specifically the number of hours being worked. By withdrawing their goodwill, officers will not remove personal protective equipment or any other police items from their workplaces, which could be miles away from where they live. They will also check all vehicles before starting work. Overtime requests from superiors may be accepted, but officers will then claim payment later.
In a letter to Chief Constable Jo Farrell, David Kennedy, the general secretary of the SPF, said “This formal withdrawal of good will is not an action the JCC [Joint Central Committee of the SPF] has taken lightly. It is borne from sheer disappointment and the strength of feeling our members have for the utter contempt this offer shows them. Police officers feel totally undervalued by the service, and that has been apparent … in surveys in the last six months from both Police Scotland and the SPF.”
The force has warned that officer numbers could be cut by as much as 1,500 in the next 18 months, raising concerns for public safety. The Scottish Conservatives justice spokesman Liam Kerr claims this “should be an urgent wake-up call for SNP ministers to stop treating police officers with such contempt”. He continues, “Given that they cannot legally go on strike, it is the most powerful step they can take to show how angry they are…”
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