The Jamaica Police Federation on Tuesday served notice that until the Government serves up a much improved package, it is not prepared to sign any wage agreement.
Up to November, some 15 trade unions had signed on to the new compensation package offered to public-sector workers, but the Jamaica Teachers’ Association and the Jamaica Police Federation have been holding out for better remuneration.
Chairman of the Federation, Corporal Rohan James, told The Gleaner that based on the mandate from his members and the Government’s stance, they were nowhere near reaching an accord.
“The membership has asked me to ensure that the best salary package is unearthed. Based on the social safety net that we are looking at, we are nowhere near any of that. It is for the Government to understand that this is not the normal two-year cycle of negotiations, it is an altogether different compensation that the Government has embarked on. We are not going to be submissive to any dictatorial approaches, or to allow for our membership to be remunerated less than the service and the standard that is expected,” he said.
He shared this information with The Gleaner during the New Year’s Prayer Breakfast hosted by the Non-Geographic No. 2 Chaplaincy Services Branch of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF)
“We’re not going to take the crumbs,” Corporal James vowed, disclosing that members of the JCF and its auxiliaries are the worst compensated in the region, with only law- enforcement officers in Haiti faring worse. This, despite the Government boasting about the surplus revenue it had collected. “We are not seeing any of that surplus, but we have ensured that we keep our end of the bargain by staying on the job, even without the resources to effectively serve the citizens of this country,” Corporal James charged.
He said that it is time that the Government gets serious about the negotiations, recognising that what is at stake is national security and as such, the welfare of law-enforcement agents must be treated with the utmost respect.
“The membership has very high expectations that the Government will acknowledge their purpose and value, and will therefore move with alacrity to ensure that whatever is needed to resolve this issue, that they sit at the table and seek to resolve it, rather than stay away from the table with a dictatorial approach. They believe that they can (influence) the rank and file to accept less than the value of their service and worth, but we know that they (parliamentarians) are seeking to remunerate themselves far better than what they are seeking to offer us,” Corporal James said.
Earlier, in his greeting to the prayer breakfast, Corporal James made it clear that he was prepared for the long haul, casting himself as the biblical David who slew the giant Goliath.
“Government must rise to the occasion while we ‘stir response to duty’s call’. They must stand in the gap with us now, when it matters most, so that the people of Jamaica can enjoy safety and security. Blessed are those who treat the police right, because they will be safe and secure,” he declared.