The police have won the pay negotiation PR war
The dynamics of policing are unique. No other workforce is genuinely thrust into the line of danger every day...
The ongoing impasse in police pay negotiations poses a major flashpoint for our self-titled “law and order Government”. All coalition partners understandably made a fuss about law and order issues during the election campaign, but despite being faced with a formidable fiscal challenge to get the nation’s financial house in order, expecting police officers to accept a penny-pinching, parsimonious pay offer is simply untenable.
The fact that cops are pleading for a better pay deal at the same time that billions of dollars in tax write-offs is being shored up for landlords doesn’t pass the pub test.
The optics are horrendous. In Tova O’Brien’s stand-up podcast interview with the Prime Minister late last week, it was jarring that Christopher Luxon didn’t have a firm grip on the current starting pay rate for a trainee police officer.
After initially demurring, he punted on the annual pay rate being around $90,000 – nearly double the reality. It is not unreasonable to expect the PM to be more plugged-in and across the details on the kitchen table political issues confronting his administration.
Luxon looked aloof, but he is not alone. Take a look at the NZ Police official recruitment website, New Cops. It proudly claims to prospective trainees: “You’ll earn a great salary and learn valuable skills from day one.” It goes on to confirm that after starting at the Royal NZ Police College, the annual salary is $50,844, plus an annual superannuation subsidy of $5176. Take home pay for a new cop is only just above the minimum wage.
Full disclosure – I’ve got a family member who is about to head to Police College as a new recruit. Despite the underwhelming remuneration, it is the culmination of a lifelong dream for him. And it’s been a long-time coming because being Christchurch-based, male and European, his desire to work in the Canterbury police district delayed his admittance to Police College for several years.
Canterbury is the most desired deployment region, for recruits and existing staff. Despite the Government’s stated goal of recruiting 500 additional frontline police, over and above the worrying attrition rate, the New Cops website highlights that Canterbury is the only police district not currently open to applications from new recruits.
But back to the pay debate. I’m struggling to understand how PM Luxon can credibly characterise the current pay deal on the table as an “enhanced offer”, particularly when you consider the backdated pay increase start dates, plus the various clawbacks and contract term changes, compared to the previous offer that was rejected in the dying days of the Labour government.
Police Association president Chris Cahill has played a smart game piling the pressure on the Government, currying immense public sympathy for the plight of police pay rates. Revelations that the average nurse or a social worker is earning $20,000 more than a constable, after five years on the job, is obscene and indefensible.
One email sent by a serving officer to the Police Association last week stopped me in my tracks. “As I attend the sudden death of a 12-year-old girl and help a grieving family, then go to a gruesome violent stabbing that will stay with me forever, I will remember that I am valued by this disgusting offer.” Cahill has the won the PR war, which will surely force the Government’s hand.
Speculation continues to swirl that Finance Minister Nicola Willis spurned Police Minister Mark Michell’s recent bid to fatten the fiscal envelope to settle the pay talks. Yes, Willis is freaked by the deteriorating financial accounts, but robbing police of a decent deal is a political dead-end.
If the stand-off ultimately leads to compulsory arbitration, that will likely favour the Police Association cause. The arbitration factors include “the recruitment and retention of suitably qualified Police employees”, which perfectly plays into the hands of the Police Association’s narrative, given the exodus to Oz.
The dynamics of policing are unique. No other workforce is genuinely thrust into the line of danger every day, with no guarantees of returning home in one piece, after every shift. It is a remarkable display of courage and duty, day in, day out. Up the offer.