The results of the latest Police Association survey cast a stark light on the mental health pressures facing members, underscoring that policing today can have severe implications for staff wellbeing and operational effectiveness.

In the 2025 NZ Police Association, Te Aka Hāpai Member Survey, more than half of respondents (54%) identified mental health as a serious problem within Police culture (17% described it as “very serious”), ranking it well above workplace bullying (28%), misuse of social media (23%) and sexism (20%).

Concerns were reported across all ranks, roles and regions, but some groups were more affected. Employees, Road Policing, those in administration or training, senior management and members working in Wellington, Canterbury and urban areas were more likely to cite mental health as a serious problem. Women, Māori and Pacific peoples also reported higher levels of concern.

A large majority reported working while overtired (85%) or sick (78%) and more than half (56%) worked while stressed or traumatised. Members consistently cited lack of resources as the main reason they felt at risk (42%), followed by pressure from above (35%), and lack of back-up or breaks (29%).

'Urgent action needed'

The findings reinforce international research on policing and mental health. Studies from the UK, Australia and New Zealand consistently show that exposure to trauma, long hours and organisational stress contribute to high levels of post-traumatic stress symptoms among police officers, undermining operational effectiveness, decision-making and community safety.

“Our 2025 survey shows chronic stress, organisational pressures and trauma exposure are widespread and greatly affecting members’ wellbeing and operational capability,” association president Chris Cahill says.

“The message could not be any clearer: Police cannot rely on reactive, short-term interventions such as the current Employee Assistance Programme (EAP),” he says.

“We need proactive, long-term, tailored strategies that are evidence-based and easily accessible and reflect the realities of modern policing, particularly for high-risk roles and communities.

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“Our 2025 survey shows chronic stress, organisational pressures and trauma exposure are widespread and greatly affecting members’ wellbeing and operational capability,” association president Chris Cahill says.

“The message could not be any clearer: Police cannot rely on reactive, short-term interventions such as the current Employee Assistance Programme (EAP),” he says.

“We need proactive, long-term, tailored strategies that are evidence-based and easily accessible and reflect the realities of modern policing, particularly for high-risk roles and communities.

“Members tell me every day about the very real pressures they face and that mental health must be treated as a core part of policing. It is vital to keep officers safe, operationally effective and resilient in the face of ever-growing demands.

“It’s not enough to raise awareness, Police must urgently act to foster a culture where mental health is treated as seriously as operational readiness,” Chris says.

Breaking point

Senior Constable Jamie Cook is all too aware of the relentless pressure, repeated exposure to trauma and constant fatigue inherent in policing today. The Invercargill Road Policing officer was diagnosed with depression in 2019.

“I was doing on-call as a serious crash investigator as well as my BAU. Trying to do both really took its toll. Dealing with fatalities – you see some gory sights – and then trying to fit in home life as well. So pressures from home, from work, from the bosses… People had been asking me, ‘Are you OK?’ and I was just fobbing them off, saying, ‘I’m just having one of those days’.

“Then I had that realisation that one of those days was one of those weeks, one of those months, one of those years… I had hit rock bottom. I had no idea who I was or where I was. I bottled it up as much as I could until I exploded. When I went to the doctor, I scored very highly [for depression]. It was alarming,” Jamie says.

“I knew there was something wrong but I didn't realise how much the pressure had hold of me. I was trying to be there for everyone. But on the flip side, I wasn't letting anyone in to help me.

“Everyone is different in this job. Everyone has a breaking point, but we don’t want people to reach that breaking point like I did.”

Jamie says doing shift work and the pressure of today’s policing environment can “lead to people second guessing even being in the job”.

“We’ve got more serious crime now, firearms incidents, ram raids, serious assaults, drugs. Fourteen years ago when I started, crime wasn’t as serious and frequent as it is now. The home life-work life balance is also really tough. You’re getting pressures 24/7… it’s hard to please everybody. That’s a scary thing for any officer,” he says.

“So many put the ‘blue suit’ on and feel 10 foot tall and bulletproof. Then they take it off and reality hits. They think that the blue uniform means we’re the ones people look to for help and we can’t look to other people for help.”

Jamie says enduring low staff numbers on the front line and high workload can also push people to work when they shouldn’t.

“I’ve been there myself, working when you haven’t had enough sleep, or you're slightly crook. Everyone does it. You put on a brave face because if you say you’re sick, tired or not feeling right then you worry about how you’re perceived... Also, you don’t want to let the team down.

“People will definitely log the near miss-type event, but will they put in fatigue, stress, tiredness? No, because they think that if they are deemed unfit to work, they’ll get a flag against their name. It is concerning having [people on the job tired, sick or traumatised]. It can put pressure on your judgement calls if you're at a serious incident,” he says.

‘You are not alone’

Jamie believes access to consistent support for as long as it’s needed can mean the difference between managing stress effectively and experiencing burnout or mental health injury.

While formal support exists through Police’s EAP and Safer People initiatives, this year’s survey responses suggest many members see them as insufficient. Session limits, workload pressures and stigma reduce uptake.

“More needs to be done to raise awareness of the EAP and it definitely needs to offer more than three or four sessions. I think at least six to nine minimum. There’s no start-finish to treating mental health issues,” Jamie says. “And personally, I don’t know if we’ve got enough Police wellness advisers with one per district. We’ve got Karen Hodgkinson, who does all of Southern, from Oamaru down to Stewart Island. That’s a massive area for one person to deal with.

He’d also like to see initiatives around reintegration, regular in-person check-ins and/or follow-ups and training for managers.

“[The help you get] depends on who your manager is. There are some who are really good with talking to people, but there’s others that who might not be effective… they might not know how to approach it and how to come across. They’re not trained in that sort of thing and that’s no fault of their own.”

Jamie says mental health issues in Police must be “vocalised more”, to talk about how to identify them in yourself and others, how to reach out, how to manage that.

“Why hide it. If I see people aren’t happy or they’re angry, whatever, I will tell them, ‘Don't be that type of person, saying you’re fine. Don't bottle it up, because that is the worst bloody thing you could ever do. Speak to people, talk to people, ask for help. You are not alone’.”