Police Need Near Double Figure Pay Rise After Decade of Below Inflation Increases

POLICE officers need to see a “near double figure” percentage pay rise in September to make up for more than a decade of below inflation increases, South Yorkshire Police Federation has said.

Officers up and down the country are struggling like never before, with many relaying on food banks and vouchers to feed their families.

The police officer pay rise for 2022/23 is likely to be announced in July and will kick in on 1 September, and officers need to see a real commitment from the Government that thing will improve for them, Steve Kent, Federation Chair, said.

Steve said: “Enough is enough. I’m really cognisant that our officers are getting a little bit impatient because we seem to be saying the same rhetoric year on year, but we are now seeing officers really struggling financially.

“There has to now be a near double figure pay rise in percentage terms for our officers to repair some of the horrific damage that’s happened over the last 12 years.”

Steve added that given the recent industrial action taken by the RMT and others, there is more discussion around next steps.

He said: “[If we don’t get a decent pay rise], we are going to have to – and I’ve made this clear – we’re going to have to reconsider our position locally and nationally in terms of how we tackle this going forward. I think we know what that means. We’re going to have to have a change in tack, basically.

“We need a big pay rise to put people back onto the path of fair pay because officers’ pay has lagged behind the pay increases over the last ten years anyway. And then you couple that with the cost of living crisis and fuel, and it’s a perfect storm.”