IT would be \u201cabsolutely intolerable\u201d for police officers not to get a pay rise this year, the Chairman of South Yorkshire Police Federation has said.<\/p>\n
Some newspapers have reported that the Government is considering a two-year public sector pay freeze, among other measures, to fund the UK\u2019s deficit in the wake of the coronavirus lockdown.<\/p>\n
Other newspapers have reported that Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said there is \u201cno question\u201d of freezing public sector pay and that there will not be a return to austerity measures, but there has yet to be any official announcement.<\/p>\n
South Yorkshire Police Federation Chairman Steve Kent said: \u201cMy view on this is we need to go in on the front foot. If this is even being considered as one of the options, because I\u2019m sure it will be, we need to go out there and say \u2018this would not be acceptable to our members\u2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cOfficers have had a decade of cuts and austerity to our wages which has seen a reduction in real-terms salary and pay. So there\u2019s absolutely no way now that any officers, or indeed anyone in the public sector such as our NHS colleagues, should have a pay cut.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople have to ask themselves, would the public be happy if the hardworking doctors and nurses at the frontline of this didn\u2019t get a pay rise? No, they wouldn\u2019t.<\/p>\n
\u201cWell, policing\u2019s been at the frontline as well, so it is absolutely right that we\u2019re given the same recognition and reward for the hard work that police officers do. It would absolutely be intolerable for us not to get a pay rise this year.\u201d<\/p>\n