New
terms and conditions aimed at recruiting and retaining police officers come
into force today.
Officers
will no longer lose out on pay following periods of temporary promotion through
the new regulations.
Under
the Police (Amendment) Regulations 2002, officers who have completed periods of
temporary promotion will have this taken into account for pay purposes when
they revert to their substantive rank.
This
measure is one of a number of changes to police pay and conditions of service
introduced.
Other
changes include:
–
Allowing officers from the British Transport Police to count their service with
BTP for pay and allowance purposes on joining a police force in England and
Wales. This means their service with BTP will no longer count for nothing
–
Increasing the period of maternity leave that counts for purposes of probation
and pay from 14 to 18 weeks
–
Requiring new recruits to provide a DNA sample for elimination purposes as a
condition of appointment, to ensure that innocent contamination of a crime
scene can be eliminated.
John
Denham, Home Office Minister for Police and Crime Reduction, said: "The
measures implement agreements we have reached with all the main police
organisations in the Police Negotiating Board and Police Advisory Board.
"There
are a number of practical steps to help police officers, like ensuring that
they do not lose out when serving temporarily in a higher rank. In addition, by
increasing the length of maternity leave for probation and pay will bring the
Police Service into line with other areas of the employment market."
