Pay and morale: survey results published

2 December 2020

Officers in Humberside have once again reported better Force morale than the majority of other forces.

And those reporting low morale in the Force fell by another 12 per cent, to 35 per cent, when compared to last year.

There was a slight increase in officers reporting low personal morale – from 35 per cent to 41 per cent – but these figures still mean Humberside officers have the 10^th highest level of personal morale when compared to the other 42 forces in England and Wales.

The figures are revealed in a report compiled after the annual Police Federation pay and morale survey.

The Force also came out well in other areas of the report - intention to leave policing (7^th lowest in the country) and whether they would recommend policing to others (3^rd highest).

“It is good to see that our officers are faring better than others across the country. They have been under huge pressure due to the pandemic and have remained committed to serving their communities regardless of the risks to their own health and that of their families,” said Pete Musgrave, chair of Humberside Police Federation.

“We will be discussing the findings of this report with the Chief Constable and the Police and Crime Commissioner and will work with the Force to see what improvements could be made.

“But I think it is fair to say that some of the issues having the biggest impact on our members – such as attitudes towards the police, pay and pensions – are out of the control of the Chief and the PCC and it will be down to the national Federation to discuss these with the Government and other stakeholders.”

Chief Constable Lee Freeman said: “I will continue to do everything I can to support my officers and staff. Myself and my leadership team will continue to work relentlessly to make improvements to those things that are within our control and that do make a difference to their working life.”

The survey was carried out across all 43 forces in England and Wales giving more than 130,000 Federation members their first opportunity to provide detailed feedback on how policing the pandemic had affected their finances and wellbeing. It revealed:

53 per cent of respondents from Humberside Police felt the Force has managed officers well during the pandemic, against a national average of 49 per cent
74 per cent said the Force had kept them up to date with Covid-19-related guidance, the figure nationally was 78 per cent
41 per cent said they had received adequate training on the crisis in line with the national figure.

Other key findings from Humberside Police Federation members were:

Pay and remuneration

87 per cent of respondents said they don’t feel they’re paid fairly for the stresses and strains of the job, and 73 per cent said that they’re not fairly paid for the hazards they faced. Nationally, the figures were 86 per cent and 77 per cent respectively

70 per cent said they were dissatisfied with their overall remuneration, including pay and allowances
33 per cent worried about the state of their finances daily or almost daily, lower than the national figure of 37 per cent
58 per cent felt they were worse off financially than they were five years ago
Six per cent reported never or almost never having enough money to cover their essentials.

Morale

The top reasons given for low morale were how the police are treated as a whole (85 per cent), pay and benefits and workload and responsibilities (both 66 per cent), pension (63 per cent) and the Covid-19 crisis (60 per cent).

Attitudes towards the police

More than half of respondents (55 per cent) said they did not feel valued in the police compared to 57 per cent nationally
48 per cent said they wouldn’t recommend joining the police to others.

Recruitment drive

44 per cent (33 per cent nationally) felt the Force would be able to recruit the number of officers allocated to Humberside as part of the Government’s plans to boost officer numbers by 20,000 over a three-year programme.

The survey was compiled by the national Federation’s research and policy department, which plays a vital part in providing strategically important evidence to achieve better pay and conditions for members.

It generated more than 25,000 responses which is around 20 per cent of all Federated rank officers across England and Wales.

National Federation chair John Apter said: “These results should give serious concern to chief constables and to Government.

“The low morale reported by officers comes as no surprise, but the police service needs to take its head out of the sand and acknowledge we have a serious issue.

“My colleagues take the time to fill in these surveys and give their honest views, so it would be a failing by police leaders to ignore what is being said.

“This year, more than ever, officers have been put under significant pressure, dealing with the day job as well as policing the constantly changing Covid rules.

“Despite doing their very best, they have been turned into the villains of this pandemic by some, damned whatever they do; and this constant criticism takes its toll.

“While it might come as a surprise to some, police officers are human beings; they have their own worries about the virus and the fear that they take it home to their families.

“I accept that the wellbeing of police officers is considered more now than it has ever been in the past, there is some good work going on in some forces, but the benefits of this good work are still not being felt by all of our members and that is a serious issue.

“This must be seen for what it is, a cry for help from police officers who need to ensure their voice is heard. If these results are ignored by police leaders, then this will be a failing that will be unforgivable.”

Read the full report for Humberside.