A sustained campaign has resulted in a win for some Police Association members while others are heading to the Employment Relations Authority.

The association fought to have any of its members who are fixed-term employees on contracts of six months or more covered by the Police Employee Collective Employment Agreement (CEA). Police agreed to do this as part of the CEA’s terms of settlement in September 2023.

However, several members have not been seeing the benefits of the hard-won battle since then – Police had not been applying all the terms and conditions of the CEA, including salary step alignment, to these union members since April 2023. 

Senior employment adviser Rachel Lane says she repeatedly informed Police over several months that the association’s position was those on fixed-term arrangements greater than six months were entitled to “absolutely everything in the collective as per legislation”.

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

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 had completed that by June 30, she says.

“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.”

Any association members who believe they qualify for backpay and who have not noticed a change to their pay should contact their HR adviser in the first instance.

Take it or leave it?

The association’s battle for longer fixed-termers began with an inquiry about entitlement to long service leave, Rachel says. 

“It was about two people [who] had previously been sworn for some years and then moved to non-sworn, fixed-term roles. One believed her combined sworn and non-sworn service of 10 years or more now entitled her to long service leave and the other was checking before it comes due.

“The association totally agrees. Police agreed back in 2024 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.” 

The initial response was favourable for the two members. However, Police has since backtracked, deeming any other fixed-term staff with continuous Police or government department service ineligible for long service leave as well as other benefits. 

The association is now challenging Police legally, holding its position that members who meet the criteria are entitled to the same recognition and terms as other employees covered by the CEA. A statement of problem will shortly be filed in the Employment Relations Authority where the association will seek to enforce the CEA.

Watch this space, Rachel says.

Agreement disagreement

Police had not been applying all the terms and conditions of the CEA, including salary step alignment, to longer fixed-termers because it believes a fixed-term contract trumps the CEA. 

Police maintained that all fixed-term staff were on individual employment agreements (IEAs) so were not required to increase their remuneration in line with the CEA – regardless of their association membership – saying: “The IEA takes precedence during their tenure… the REM in the fixed-term contract is what they’re paid.” 

Police therefore refused competency/service increment on a member’s employment anniversary date if they had been fixed-term for more than a year.

Rachel repeatedly 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. On that basis alone, all the terms and conditions of the CEA apply, not just those Police choose to include in a fixed-term agreement document.”

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