PCSOs

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Conference
Police Staff Service Group Conference 2005
Date
19 June 2005
Decision
Carried

Conference welcomes the Government’s announcement that the Service will employ 25,000 Police Community Support Officers by 2008. In so doing, Conference acknowledges that this major increase in the Police Staff establishment will present both opportunities and challenges for the Police Staff Service Group.

The opportunities include the potential for a massive increase in membership and potential activism, as well as the consolidation of UNISON as a key police stakeholder. The challenges include the risk that other representative organisations will bid to organise the new workforce.

In view of these opportunities and threats, Conference asks the Service Group Executive to prioritise its organising plan for PCSOs, including

1) Convene a task orientated, time-limited working party of PCSO representatives to help construct an issue based organising campaign.

2) Working Party to comprise approximately 6 reps to be chosen according to proportionality and fair representation from regional nominations.

3) Map PCSO membership via branches.

4) Ensure that RMS data on PCSOs is up-to-date and accurate.

5) Commission appropriate research project to help identify organising issues and raise UNISON’s profile as the union for PCSOs.

6) Plan a PCSO seminar for 2005 with high profile speakers/high media interest.

Conference further instructs the SGE to support our PCSO membership by influencing the Home Office, ACPO, APA and the Employers Association to establish PSCO funding so that it becomes part of the annual police budget and those that are currently on temporary contracts should be made established staff as soon as practicable.