Day of Action

The PSA’s Day of Action in support of our pay claim was held on 8 June, with thousands of members across NSW making their voices heard by taking action. Members in ROG were unable to strike, but many members participated in the alternative industrial action devised by the delegates. This strategy was very successful, not least because, owing to assurances that there would be no strike action in ROG or PoliceLink, the IRC did not make orders restraining industrial action in the Police Force.

The PSA has written to the NSW Government to seek further information from their slightly revised wage offer and continue discussions for a fair pay rise, and we will await the Government’s Budget release on Tuesday 21 June.

Restructure

Following the recent restructure creating a number of new SS1 positions at Sydney ROG Centre, the PSA was invited to discussions with ROG Commander Jill Walters on 25 May. The meeting discussed a number of matters.

Filling of vacant SCO positions

Management indicated that they wished to proceed to fill all the vacant SCO positions. They stated that they will do this after the Role Description and duties are updated to return the SCO job to a proper leadership role. This process is well advanced and has the union’s in-principle support.

Management also asked the PSA to agree that newly promoted SCOs who are on grandfathered matrix conditions would shift from the 25 per cent rolled-up penalties to actual penalties. The PSA said we would not agree to this as the issue was fully considered in 2017 at the time the Flexible Rostering Agreement was revised and nothing has changed since that time. Management said they would consider their position. The PSA is of the view that this issue will not delay the advertising of the SCO positions. The 2017 grandfathering arrangements will not be renegotiated. We are waiting for management to respond to us and we ask members to be patient, as the issue is likely to be resolved before very long.

The meeting also discussed award migration, shift numbers and VFT rosters.

Award migration

This proposal has been taken off the table. The idea was to move all ROG staff onto the Police Admin clerical salary scales, thus facilitating mobility between ROG and the rest of the Police administrative workforce. The PSA has always been open to discussing this, but our view has been that the difficulties in matching the pay rates outweigh the limited benefits. At the meeting, management reported that the only way they could do it would be to get rid of the CO Grade 5 increment, which would obviously be difficult. They notified us that they did not intend to pursue the proposal, as the disadvantages outweighed the benefits. This is a management decision, not a negotiated position, but it does not do anything other than close the book on a process that was never likely to go anywhere.

Shift numbers

Management reported that they have done data analysis and have come up with a better target minimum number for night shifts. The target for day shifts will remain unchanged. On the basis of the detailed briefing we received, the data analysis seems sound and the new system should allow for better allocation of resources across the week.

Rostering of VFTs

Management stated that they plan to roster the VFT’s in blocks on longer shifts (not 12 hours), which is positive, but still lacks detail. Management agreed to a further meeting on this issue.