POLICE chiefs have defended a bonus system for officers performing \u201cparticularly unpleasant tasks” – including dealing with dead bodies and attending difficult fatal road accidents.<\/p>\n
ACPO said the payments recognise when the work being done can test \u201ceven the most seasoned\u201d of officers.\u00a0Neil Bowles, chairman of South Yorkshire Police Federation, said bonuses are awarded to officers who go \u201cabove and beyond the call of duty.\u201d<\/p>\n
Steve White, Vice-Chairman of the Police Federation of England and Wales, said: \u201cOfficers’ remuneration should reflect the sometimes extraordinary tasks they are asked to perform.”<\/p>\n
Figures obtained by the Mail on Sunday using the Freedom of Information Act 2000 showed some police officers and staff are paid compensation ranging from \u00a350 to \u00a3500 for tasks including attending the scene of a car crash or murder.<\/p>\n
South Yorkshire Police paid out \u00a32,700 in 2011-12 for unpleasant work.<\/p>\n
Mr Bowles, who sits on the force panel which decides who receives these bonus awards, added that they are given to officers who are involved in \u201clong, arduous and unpleasant\u201d tasks that not every police officer or member of police staff would experience.<\/p>\n
He said the maximum amount officers could receive is \u00a3500 \u2013 although this is rarely awarded.<\/p>\n
ACPO\u2019S national policing lead for recognition and reward, Thames Valley\u2019s Deputy Chief Constable Francis Habgood, said: “Even within policing there are some tasks we have to do which are particularly outstanding in their nature and which even the most experienced of police officers can find emotionally draining and challenging.<\/p>\n
“There is a small proportion of such cases, but even the most seasoned of officers deserve some recognition for particularly unpleasant tasks, tasks which can include for instance; searching a decomposing body or removing fatalities from a particularly distressing scene.<\/p>\n
“These bonuses are not designed to reward officers for merely doing their day-to-day jobs, but to recognise when the task at hand can try even the toughest emotional and professional resolve.”<\/p>\n
Mr White added: \u201cWhile police officers are expected to undertake a wide range of work as part of their day-to-day responsibilities they are occasionally required to perform tasks which are particularly unpleasant.<\/p>\n
\u201cChief officers have the discretion to recognise such work with what is often a very modest payment and officers who have carried out such duties are entitled to this recognition.\u201d<\/p>\n
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