A sustained campaign by the Police Association has resulted in a partial win for members on fixed-term contracts of six months or more.

Police has agreed that it should have been applying all the terms and conditions of the Police Employee Collective Employment Agreement (CEA), including salary step alignment to these union members since April 2023.

The association pushed to expand the scope and coverage of the employee CEA to cover these employees and Police agreed as part of the CEA’s terms of settlement in September 2023.

The issue became even more apparent after an Official Information Act request from the association in March 2024 uncovered internal Police documents suggesting staff on longer fixed-term agreements were not being moved to a step in their pay band “because it would cost an extra $500 per person on average”, senior employment adviser Rachel Lane says.

Police maintained that fixed-term staff were on individual employment agreements (IEAs) – even if they were association members: “The IEA takes precedent during their tenure… the REM in the fixed-term contract is what they’re paid.” So essentially no competency/service increment on their employment anniversary date after being on a fixed term contract for more than a year.

Rachel challenged that: “Under the Employment Relations Act, you can only be covered by one contract, and these people have joined the union [the Police Association] lawfully, and therefore all the terms and conditions of the CEA apply.

“I repeatedly informed Police over several months that our position was that they’re entitled to absolutely everything in the collective as per legislation.”

It took until just recently for Police to accept the association is right – to a point (see below). 

“We want all of our members to know that it is the association that has been pushing for this and we finally have a resolution,” Rachel says. “In this case, it’s a win for union members who are on fixed term contracts of six months or more and includes those who were in the union during the term of the previous CEA.”

Affected members should have had $4000 applied to their total remuneration and then, if not already, be transitioned to the closest highest step within the remuneration tables. A further 4% increase should have followed on April 3, 2024, Rachel says. 

The result includes backpay to the start date of the CEA, which was April 3, 2023. Police should hopefully have completed that by June 30, she says.

Any association members who believe they fit into this cohort but who have not noticed a change to their pay should contact their HR adviser in the first instance.

On the other hand…

The battle on behalf of association members on longer fixed-term agreements actually began with an inquiry about entitlement to long service leave, Rachel says. 

“In this case, it was about two people [who] had previously been sworn for some years and then moved to a non-sworn, fixed-term contract. They believed their combined service of 10 years or more now entitled them to the leave.

“The association totally agrees. Remember, Police agreed back in 2023 that fixed-term employees on contracts of six months or more and who are in the union are now covered by all terms and conditions in the employee CEA – including all leave provisions.” 

Police’s initial response looked favourable, she says, but its employment relations (ER) team has since backtracked, deeming this cohort ineligible for long service leave. 

At one point, Rachel says, Police went as far as saying it wouldn’t apply for obvious reasons anyway – fixed terms are never for 10 years or more. Yet she is aware of at least two employees who have been “fixed termers” for more than a decade.

So while the initial query “morphed into all the other terms and conditions in the collective” and that resulted in a win, the association has vowed to hold to its position that the two members who made the initial inquiry – and potentially others – deserve the same recognition for their loyalty to Police as other employees covered by the CEA. 

“We are even willing to challenge Police legally. Watch this space.”