- Conference
- 2023 Police & Justice Service Group Conference
- Date
- 19 May 2023
- Decision
- Carried
Conference believes that serving Police Staff should have same right as any member of the public to make a complaint against police if they are poorly treated or mistakes are made by Police colleagues from their home force when a staff member becomes a victim of crime or an alleged offender when off duty.
Conference is appalled that our Police staff do not have the right in law to make a complaint against Police to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), in the same way a non-police employee does. This is also the case if Police Staff leave the Police and the incident they wish to complain about happened whilst they were under direction and control of the Chief Constable at the time of the act causing the complaint.
The IOPC will not investigate a complaint against police from a serving member of staff, or a member of staff making a complaint after they have left employment, if the act causing the complaint happened whilst under direction and control of the Chief Constable. The IOPC maintain that any such complaint should become a grievance, yet the complaint may not be an employment matter and therefore cannot be considered a grievance. In the case of past employees the employer has no obligation to investigate matters once the employment relationship has ended.
Conference accepts our members are not Police Officers or Special Constables and therefore are not servants of the crown. Our members are employees and when off duty should be able to complain as their friends or neighbours would be able to.
Conference calls upon the Service Group Executive to:
1)Work with the National Labour Link Committee to raise awareness of Police Staff within the Labour Party;
2)Work with the National Labour Link Committee to raise the issue presented with the Labour MPs who may not be aware of this issue;
3)Use the link with the National Labour Link Committee to encourage the Labour Party to lobby the government to amend the Police Reform Act to allow complaints from Police Staff against their home force when off duty;
4)Work with UNISON’s Labour Link to propose future party policy on this issue and propose legislation or amendments to legislation to enable Police staff to be treated fairly.
This change would enable the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) to investigate a complaint where the complainant is a serving member of staff and off duty, and is complaining against the actions of their home force, where the complaint is not employment related.