Secretary’s Update
As we approach the Federation’s 3 yearly election , I thought it timely to give you an update on where we are on a number of different matters, where I see us heading and inviting you to get involved in the most significant changes ever in the Scottish Police Service.
1.Pay
As you will know, 2011 was the first year for as long as most can remember when Police Officers didn’t get an inflationary pay rise in September. In real terms this is of course means a pay cut as almost everything else has increased in cost.
On top of this, in January 2011, the Scottish Police Federation was forced to negotiate a cut in the Scottish policing pay bill. We tried to get the best deal possible for our members and managed to protect pensionable pay including CRTP, negotiate a proper on-call allowance, get plain clothes allowance back and maintain overtime premium rates (time and a half and double time). The biggest ‘give’ was the highly divisive SPP available to a maximum of only 40% of our workforce.
Whilst any pay cut is bad, some pay cuts are worse than others. You will be aware of the Winsor recommendations to pay and conditions in England and Wales where some officers now face a £9000 drop in their pay over the next 2 year! And there’s more bad news for them …Winsor Part 2 has still to report and is expected to recommend a Pay Review Body as opposed to a negotiating body. Again this will not apply in Scotland.
Some are predicting that it will only be a matter of time before the Winsor recommendations are implemented in Scotland – I discourage that pessimistic view. Yes of course any changes are possible but we could also be hit by a meteorite tomorrow so lets live with what we know and what we can forecast. Winsor isn’t on the map for Scottish officers.
2. Pensions
Most will be aware that we are facing an increase to our pension contributions. We have fought hard over this issue and have argued alongside the trades unions and latterly with the Scottish Government. In short Westminster is imposing a tax on public service workers and police officers. Thatcher gave us the Poll Tax, Cameron gave us the Polis Tax. This levy will get you nothing more nothing less, it is a cash grab.
Although policing is devolved to the Scottish Government, it has had its budgets cut by the equivalent amount and in the absence of other suggestions to save the £50million needed over three years, has had to pass on these cuts.
The final whistle hasn’t yet blown though and the eventual result of the TUC’s industrial action and future negotiations will affect our end package. Once we know what that is I will of course update you.
For those on the Police Pension Scheme (ie pre 2006) these increases are expected to equates to a 3.2% increase in line with all other public sector pension schemes.
For those on the New Pension Scheme (2006 onwards) the increases will be a bit less.
Follow this link to access the Scottish Public Pension Agency’s Online calculator to see how the proposals would affect you.
As always, get independent financial advice if you even think about leaving the pension scheme as it is rarely a sensible decision.
If that weren’t enough, in a separate development, the pensions being paid are now being linked to the CPI, which is a lower level of inflation than the RPI, which they were previously linked to. So you again we pay more and will get less.
Then there is proposals for career averaging of pensions, but I’ve given you enough gloomy pension news for one update and this is a complex topic that is till being discussed.
Finally a potential tax anomaly has arisen with regard to officers being re-employed as civilians in the Police. If you are considering a position post retirement, please seek independent tax advice.
3. National Force
You will all be aware that Tayside Police will cease to exist in 62 weeks and you will all become constables within The Scottish Police Service. In reality, most will see little difference to work, you will have the same locker, same police car- maybe with a different badge and unfortunately for some same workbasket!
There will in time be more development opportunities if you want to take them, but we have been given an assurance from both the Cabinet Secretaries for Finance and Justice that officers in Tayside will remain posted in Tayside unless they proactively seek a transfer elsewhere.
The restructuring will also allow us to maintain police officer numbers and relieves the pressure on reform of pay and conditions.
We will also gradually see more uniformity of systems, processes and policies and a rationalising of backroom functions. Nobody is entirely clear what this will look like as there needs to be an internal map of regions. Will Tayside’s divisions remain in the one region? Will Tayside be part of a region based on the sheriffdom of Central and Fife? We don’t know- but (hint ACPOS) we really need to , and really soon!
The Federation are being invited nationally and locally to contribute to the reform discussions and to the now 16 workstreams that are ongoing. We are absolutely committed to making the new service work and to ensuring that the federated ranks are properly represented and protected.
The Force is putting out what information they have on the dedicated section of the intranet and I would suggest that you refer to that for information initially. At this stage there is a lot of ‘initiation of projects’ and not a lot to show or say. Things must pick up very quickly.
4. Events
The Federation have been kept abreast of planning for the Olympics, Commonwealth Games (2014) and Ryder Cup (2014). The Olympics is the most pressing and there will certainly be a torrent of planning activity, accreditation and arrangements for that. Scottish Federation reps will be integrated with the Olympic Planning Team and available to any officers working in England where we will be looking after and sorting the issues that will inevitably arise. Strangely, Officers will likely be on different pay and conditions than our UK colleagues.
5. Single Division
With a move to a single force next year, Tayside Police is still has a budget shortage to fill. The Chief Constable has decided to deal with this by moving to a single territorial policing division supported by a Headquarters and a Crime Division. This has immediately cut down the number of senior officers – one of the few financial levers the Force has left.
The message here is similar to the National Force, there should be little difference to your day-to-day working. It will not see rural areas stripped of resources it is about restructuring command and senior management functions.
The Federation sit on the Oversight group for this project and we welcome any observations you have about how this is going to work and later how it is working.
6. Insurances
Most members are in the Group Insurance Scheme. Many forget the provisions of it 
and I would suggest taking a few minutes to look at the insurance booklets- available on the internet and intranet if you’ve lost the copy we attached to your payslip.
People often forget about hospitalisation benefit, about home and car breakdown cover and about the breadth of the legal advice line. Speak to a Fed Rep if you have any questions. Nationally, we have already started constructing a Group Insurance Package for Scotland and with 17,500 members, as the biggest UK force after the Met, we will enjoy some good economies of scale.
In the interim, locally we have added free accident management cover with Proximo (If you are involved in a no fault accident we have a number that when you call, will arrange everything for you from recovery to arranging a replacement car, to reclaiming uninsured losses.) and have arranged a number of legal expenses deals. See the website for more information.
7. Communication
We have pulled together a new Federation Website www.taysidejbb.org.uk that integrates with Twitter and Facebook, it is (finally) accessible through intranet (if you have internet access at work). It is optimized for smartphones and you can easily sign up for an emailed newsletter, generated when new content goes on so that you don’t miss anything.
The website has a FAQ on the police regulations which has been very popular and I am currently drafting one on Workforce Agreements.
8. Misconduct
The Federation Office is never quiet. Nor it would appear is the Professional Standards Department! There have been a number of high profile cases recently, funded by our Insurance schemes, which ensure that you get the best representation possible.
I am pleased to report that we have a more proportionate and pragmatic approach to suspensions now. We do however face other challenges in terms of the effect of disclosure, Cadder and now Carloway.
If you are a suspect in a criminal or misconduct enquiry, speak with us first. We have lawyers and the necessary knowledge, experience and training to ensure that you are looked after fairly and appropriately.
9. Elections
Finally, we are Just about to hold our last ever Triennial Election to Tayside Police Federation .
For those who don’t know there are 3 Rank Boards representing the Constables, Sergeants and Inspectors (inc Chief Inspectors). The rank boards come together for most business where each of the representatives has an equal vote and say on the Federations policy, strategy and view.
A number of representative are stepping down from the board this year and vacancies exist for new officers to stand.
As a Fed rep you will be trained in Police Regulations and negotiating, you will be asked to contribute and comment on policies and legislation, you will be asked to support officers at court, attend meetings on behalf of the organisation and help resolve issues between members and managers.
If you want to get more involved, you will be trained to accompany and advise officers on grievances, attend case conferences, misconduct hearings and do health and safety inspections and investigations. You will be privy to confidential briefings on terms and conditions and to updates on the reform process.
Most importantly you will be expected to have your ear to the ground, listening to your colleagues and feeding that into the Force through the appropriate channels. This is an opportunity for you to shape your job and influence the future direction of the police service.
Involvement need not be arduous and time consuming but you get out what you put in. If you want to know more, you can speak to any branch board member in confidence.
Nomination forms can be found on the Force Intranet or on the Federation Website and close on 3rd February 2012.
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