The Police Association has lost in final-offer arbitration, with the Government’s proposal to increase police pay being chosen.
It comes after several offers from the Government, represented by police, that were rejected by the majority of the roughly 10,000 association members, sending the matter to final-offer arbitration.
It also prompts questions as to how officers will react, given the Police Association suggests some staff were waiting for the outcome before deciding whether to work in Australia amid a strong recruitment drive from across the ditch.
Police Association president Chris Cahill says he’s obviously disappointed and indicates the determining factor was the threat that jobs would have to be cut if the association’s proposal was chosen.
The agreed-upon offer consists of:
The Government’s last offer earlier this year, believed to be worth almost $800 million and very similar to what has been agreed, was shot down by 75 percent of those who voted. Cahill said at the time the offer fell “well short of addressing officers’ concerns and very real needs”.
Police deputy commissioner Chris de Wattignar acknowledged the result was not what staff would have hoped for.
“[T]he length of time the process has taken has left many feeling frustrated and disappointed,” he said.
“However the independent arbitration process has found that NZ Police’s offer was fair, and that the offer was reasonable with reference to the criteria that must be considered.”
He said work could now start to give staff their lump sum and back-dated payments “as quickly as possible”.
Police Minister Mark Mitchell recognised it had been a “long process” for police staff and was pleased officers would be moving into a “paid overtime framework”.
The association had gone into final offer arbitration seeking wage increases about 5 percent higher across the three years than what police had offered. Towards the end of proceedings about 10 days ago, the association lowered its offer and sought an increase of about 2.5 percent more than police.
Cahill told the Herald it was obviously a disappointing result, noting initial talks began in October 2022.
He said while some might feel it was a fair offer, Cahill said it didn’t compensate officers for the level of pay they received while inflation was at 6-7 percent and staff received annual pay increases of 3.5 percent.
“Clearly members felt it wasn’t good enough,” Cahill said, citing the vote earlier this year.
He believed the main reason that determined the outcome was the Government’s limited ability to spend more in tight fiscal conditions, indicating police threatened to cut jobs if it was not successful.
“Police were of the view that if the association was accepted, that would impact on budgets and their ability to fully fund their current workforce.”
Cahill said officers would likely be irked by the decision in light of the additional responsibilities the Government had placed on them amid its drive to reduce crime.
He said the association would be assessing whether the outcome prompted officers to work overseas.
“We certainly don’t want to lose them but we’ll be watching closely and hoping that doesn’t come to fruition.
“Clearly for some, this will be key to their decision.”
Adam Pearse is a political reporter in the NZ Herald Press Gallery team, based at Parliament. He has worked for NZME since 2018, covering sport and health for the Northern Advocate in Whangārei before moving to the NZ Herald in Auckland, covering Covid-19 and crime.