Police staff strike action postponed
The action has been postponed following an interim agreement over danger money payments
Planned strike action by police civilian staff later this week has been postponed following an interim agreement over danger money payments.
The industrial action was set to take place across July 11-13, one of the busiest periods for policing in Northern Ireland when annual Orange Order and Royal Black Preceptory parades take place as well as loyalist bonfires.
Police civilian staff have been calling for the delivery of an uplift to their £580 annual revised environmental allowance (REA), known as danger money allowance, that was committed to five years ago.
In comparison, PSNI officers currently receive just under £4,000 annually in acknowledgement of the ongoing threat they face.
Today (Tuesday) the trade union Nipsa said an interim agreement had been reached with the PSNI over the REA.
Civilian staff, who are involved in roles such as emergency call handling and scenes of crime work, have argued they feel they are under threat and undervalued, and are working in an "effectively created two-tier workforce" due to the disparities in pay and terms and conditions
In a statement, Nipsa said it came after intense negotiations for an increase and improved terms of the REA for police staff.
However, they warned the dispute is not fully resolved, adding that action short of strike action will continue and further strike action will be "considered if necessary".
In a statement on Tuesday, Nipsa said: "A series of meetings have taken place over the last few weeks with the Chief Constable, the Justice Minister for Northern Ireland and the Policing Board and these have led to the decision to postpone the planned strike action.
"It has been agreed that some of the terms on the business case, and a lump sum payment of REA, will be put in place as soon as possible.
"This interim measure will allow additional time to achieve full implementation of the business case and continue negotiations and as a result, the planned action has been called off and the PSNI staff will remain operational this week.
"This does not fully resolve the industrial dispute and the action short of strike action will continue and further strike action will be considered if necessary.
"However, Nipsa has been given assurances that REA will be prioritised for full resolution in the coming months and Nipsa remain committed to resolving this dispute through negotiation."
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