The police vote on industrial rights is a \u201conce-in-a-lifetime opportunity\u201d and it\u2019s important that officers engage in the process, South Yorkshire Police Federation has said.<\/p>\n
The national Police Federation of England and Wales (PFEW) has said that seeking industrial rights for police officers will be a two-stage process. First, the views of members will be sought on whether they want the organisation to pursue collective bargaining rights along with binding arbitration.<\/p>\n
PFEW will then return to the membership to find out if there is a desire to pursue further industrial rights, for example the right to take industrial action. The decision will be made through a simple majority vote.<\/p>\n
South Yorkshire Police Federation Chair Steve Kent is on the local working group, and has been vocal about the need for a vote on the issue for many years. He said: \u201cI want to reassure our colleagues that this vote isn\u2019t going away. There may be slight delays to when the vote is taking place, but that is purely for logistical reasons. I\u2019m involved in the working group here, so I can say that this is not a case of \u2018if\u2019 this is happening, this is a case of \u2018when\u2019 this is happening.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need to absolutely get this right. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for us to have a meaningful vote on industrial rights, and it has never come at a better time.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s good that it\u2019s going to be a simple majority vote, and that\u2019s something we campaigned for. One of my criticisms of the last vote was it was too complex. It\u2019s my job as Federation Chair to make sure that as many cops as possible vote, whether it\u2019s yes or no. I\u2019m going around the force to talk to cops and ask them to engage with this issue, and we should achieve a good turnout on the day.\u201d<\/p>\n