The Marshall Liberal Government has successfully reached agreement with the Police Association of South Australia (PASA) for a new interim pay and conditions agreement for sworn police officers.
The deal – which extends the life of the existing Enterprise Agreement to June 30, 2020 – will strengthen SAPOL’s capabilities by making more police officers available for frontline duties and includes two annual salary increases.
It includes more flexible rostering, the ability for officers to voluntarily access ad-hoc shifts in areas of high demand, the establishment of specific part-time sworn roles and the use of civilians in non-policing roles to free-up additional officers in areas of need.
Treasurer Rob Lucas said PASA had worked cooperatively with the Government in reaching an agreement.
“This administrative agreement recognises the important work of our hardworking police officers in keeping our community safe and ensures SAPOL has the resources and flexibility required to effectively implement the Government’s plan to strengthen the state’s frontline capabilities,” said Treasurer Lucas.
“We see great value in SAPOL having more flexibility to meet the needs of frontline policing.
“As part of the reforms, SAPOL will be able to utilise its existing workforce in ways which maximise the use of sworn police officers on the frontline and in areas of high need.
“The Government welcomes PASA’s support for the implementation of the user-pays system for policing resources at private for-profit events, such as music festivals, as announced in the recent State Budget, as well as the use of civilian legal practitioners in police prosecutions when unable to attract sworn police officers.”
The deal includes a pay increase in July 2018, which is a requirement of the current 2016 Enterprise Agreement – inherited from the former Labor government. It also includes another increase in July 2019. The average increase is about 2.5%.
The salary increases have been calculated in accordance with the terms of the existing enterprise agreement which was agreed to by the former Labor government, which requires that salaries for South Australian police officers are adjusted to be 60% of the difference between the third and fourth ranking salary levels in all interstate jurisdictions. This means that actual increases are both just above and below the average depending on the particular classification.
Enterprise bargaining negotiations commenced in March 2018. They have been frank and constructive and have resulted in a reasonable salary increase offset by significant efficiency and industrial reforms.
