A pay increase for police officers on the Island is hoped to help tackle recruitment and retention issues for the force.
The starting salary for constables has seen a 12 percent increase to over £32,000.
Justice and Home Affairs Minister Jane Poole-Wilson told Amy Griffiths she's hopeful it will help relieve the pressures on junior officers:
Hi there, I'm Amy Griffiths and I'm one of the journalists in Manx Radio's Newsroom. And on this episode of Newscast, we're talking about a pay increase for police officers on the island, which is hoped to help tackle recruitment and retention issues for the force. The starting salary for Constable's has seen a 12% increase to over £32,000. Just as an home affairs minister, Jane Paul Wilson told me she's hopeful it will help relieve the pressures on junior officers. It's, as I think was well broadcast last year, there have been problems with recruitment and retention, particularly at the most junior end of the constabulary. And so it was recognised that the department working with the Police Joint Consultative Committee needed to look at how that could be addressed. So what has been agreed and now shared with staff is that in order to bring police Constable's starting pay more in line with other areas of the emergency services and criminal justice system, the first three pay points on the police pay scale are being removed, which in effect then lifts the starting salary to be more competitive. And so what that should mean, I hope for our most junior officers already within the forces that they receive pay that I hope will be attractive to them in terms of retention. But also as we go out for recruitment now, that we are able to attract more applicants to join the constabulary moving forward. And it's bringing it in line with the other emergency services that we have on the island. But why were police salaries for starters so much lower comparatively? So it's mostly to do with the history of how police pay is determined on the Isle of Man. So we fall in line with how police pay is determined in the UK. That's an agreement that dates back a number of decades. But actually there are more spine points within police Constable pay than you would see. For example, if you look at the fire and rescue service or the prison and probation service. So it's recognised that because of that historic link but also the way in which spine points exist. That the starting salary effect in effect has got out of line with the starting salary for other parts of the emergency services. So what we can do is whilst remaining in line with the UK in terms of any future overall pay award increases, it is something within our ability to actually reduce the number of spine points within the pay scale. So that we in effect can raise up the starting salary at the most junior end. And you mentioned it being tight for officers, particularly at those lower levels. And we heard stories of officers using food banks and there was that £3,000 one-off payment last year. So are you still aware of any instances where there are police officers who are really struggling financially and you're hoping this will help them? Absolutely. I mean, as you rightly say, we were aware very much that this was an issue and the retention payment was made last year in order to try and help and retain people and help address some of the challenges that people were facing, particularly in the high inflationary environment that everyone has experienced over the last couple of years. But that retention payment was made almost to allow for this further work to go on, working with the Police Joint Consultative Committee to look at what else could be done, particularly to try and address, as I say, this discrepancy that has arisen with the starting pay or the pay for lower ranks of police constables to try and bring it more in line. And I hope, yes, it will make a meaningful difference from this month for those ranks of officers, so helping to retain them and reassure them that they are valued and the work that they contribute is recognized. And recruitment and retention isn't an issue for just the police force. I mean, we've spoken to Mank's care countless times about it more broadly. If you think about the hospitality industry, it's something that many sectors are struggling with. So how confident are you that this is going to be enough of an incentive to try and tackle that problem? Well, I hope that the police, the constabulary here, I think, are very important to our island in terms of our quality of life and our safety. And so I hope that as they go out to recruit now with this change in starting salary, that will help. But they do maintain high standards at the point of recruitment. So I think in the last round, although there were 40 applicants, in fact, through the sifting process in order to look at how many people could actually be recruited to start training, that yielded just three successful candidates in the end. I think there's a wider context for the island, which is we see that employment levels are incredibly high in vacancy rates, also remain high. And we are trying to compete with a range of employers and sectors, all of whom wish to attract candidates to come and work in their sector. But the one thing that I have learnt by talking to officers is joining the constabulary is very much a vocation. And yes, it absolutely is important that we can offer a salary that is competitive with other emergency services, joint emergency services and criminal justice partners. I also recognise that people who join the constabulary are very motivated by that ethos of service and care and safety for their community. And so I hope that those people who do wish to offer that service will be attracted by the ability to keep our island safe, but also be paid fairly. And you talk about that application process. And I don't think anybody would suggest that we want to lower the caliber of people going into the force, but is there a way to make it a bit more accessible? Because three successful applicants out of 40 makes it sound like it's extremely difficult just to even get into the force, even if you do have an interest in it. Yes. And I think that that's very much a matter that the chief constable and his senior leadership team will be mindful of. But I think it's a demanding role that our police officers take on. So obviously there are physical demands and physical fitness demands. And there are also requirements around conducting character and so on, because actually given the role that police officers play, it becomes very important that those things are fully assessed, that when they go into the community and exercise, policing powers can demonstrate their ability to do that well. But yes, I think these are things that the chief constable I know is mindful of. And there is a fine balance between attracting and recruiting required numbers of people whilst maintaining high standards in the interests of our whole community. And in terms of the Department of Justice and Home Affairs, what will this mean for you in your budget? Because you were one of the departments who had to go to Tim Wald asking for more money at the end of the last financial year. So is this going to impact your department's budget in any way? So we have, because we were fully aware that this issue of addressing police pay, particularly at the lower end, was something that we would need to address. We have been able to prioritise the funding to make this adjustment this year within our existing budget. I mean, one of the reasons our budget came under such strain in the past financial year was because the Department of Home Affairs meets all of its own utility costs, which is not true of all departments around government. And that was one of the absolutely significant pressures that we saw coupled with pay increases that were greater, again, because of inflationary pressures. So there were some quite unique pressures that came to bear in the previous financial year. But this year, this adjustment to try and raise the starting salary and adjust those who are already in place by reducing the number of spine points, that is something that we are prioritising within our current budget for this year. Thank you for making it to the end of the Manx Radio newscast. You are obviously someone with exquisite taste. May I politely suggest you might want to subscribe to this and a wide range of Manx Radio podcasts at your favourite podcast provider, so our best bits will magically appear on your smartphone. Thank you. [Music] (gentle music)
