WEBVTT - No commitment from the government as police recruitment falls short

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<v Speaker 1>Let's go to Dave Flaherty now he is the WA

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<v Speaker 1>Police Union president. The Police Minister Rest Whitby has refused

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<v Speaker 1>to set a recruitment target after Labor fell short of

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<v Speaker 1>its twenty twenty promise to recruit an extra nine hundred

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<v Speaker 1>and fifty police officers by twenty twenty four. I want

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<v Speaker 1>to find out from Dave exactly what sort of numbers

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<v Speaker 1>we have got flowing through the door. Dave, good morning

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<v Speaker 1>to you mate.

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<v Speaker 2>How are you yeah?

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<v Speaker 3>Good morning Carl, how are you yeah?

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<v Speaker 2>Really well?

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<v Speaker 1>What sort of numbers have been achieved during this time?

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<v Speaker 3>Look, he was in the McGowan government that promised the

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<v Speaker 3>nine hundred and fifty extra police officers and we're still

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<v Speaker 3>struggling to make that. We're still about three hundred short.

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<v Speaker 3>Having said that, there are more police officers now than

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<v Speaker 3>every before, which is great. Unfortunately, we're filling up with

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<v Speaker 3>young officers and that's not a bad thing on their behalf.

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<v Speaker 3>They're doing a fantastic job. But retention is the key,

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<v Speaker 3>trying to keep some of our senior and experienced officers.

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<v Speaker 2>So what do they want to leave.

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<v Speaker 3>Of this many reasons, tenure is a problem. People specialize

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<v Speaker 3>in the area and they can't stay in that area.

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<v Speaker 3>They need to move on. Just the rigors of policing.

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<v Speaker 3>I think I've spoke last week in relation to the

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<v Speaker 3>number of assaults on police officers that's going through the roof.

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<v Speaker 3>It is not a fantastic career choice right now. We

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<v Speaker 3>don't feel that we're getting support from government and other

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<v Speaker 3>government departments such as the courts. It's just not in

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<v Speaker 3>a great place.

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<v Speaker 2>Is the paperwork over the top?

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<v Speaker 3>Absolutely, it's a bit ironic because certainly with this commissioner,

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<v Speaker 3>who's more tech savvy than anyone before, there was a

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<v Speaker 3>real push to be paper free, and sadly there's more

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<v Speaker 3>paperwork now than every before.

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<v Speaker 2>Why is that red tape.

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<v Speaker 3>Red tape bureaucracy.

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<v Speaker 1>I mean, it's in all ab out lives though, let's

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<v Speaker 1>face it. I mean it's just out of control everywhere.

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<v Speaker 1>Dave and I feel your pain. Look when you get

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<v Speaker 1>an opportunity to go through the police academy, which we

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<v Speaker 1>saw recently, even Oliver Peterson, I saw him down there,

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<v Speaker 1>and you know, focus on domestic violence and dealing with

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<v Speaker 1>those sorts of situations with a lot of these young

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<v Speaker 1>officers that are training. How much can a young person

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<v Speaker 1>who wants to enter the police force earn.

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<v Speaker 3>So as a as a recruit, it's just sort of

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<v Speaker 3>eighty thousand that goes up in their first year to

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<v Speaker 3>just over ninety thousand by they've done five or six

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<v Speaker 3>years and the police force they're well over one hundred thousand.

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<v Speaker 4>Right, and they obviously get some benefits for going to

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<v Speaker 4>some remote places et cetera, which is where all are.

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<v Speaker 2>Those young people feel.

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<v Speaker 4>Do you think generally though the public's are enough of police?

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<v Speaker 2>No, I don't.

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<v Speaker 3>And the problem, well, I think the problem we have

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<v Speaker 3>Mills is whilst the whilst the numbers of police are increasing,

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<v Speaker 3>bureaucracy is holding them in the office. But the population

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<v Speaker 3>of Western Australia is also booming, so the police the

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<v Speaker 3>population ratio is bigger now than every before. And as

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<v Speaker 3>the population increases, demand increases, so police i'll are being

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<v Speaker 3>tied up at jobs for longer. Are junior officers who

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<v Speaker 3>are doing a fantastic job and I'm not knocking them

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<v Speaker 3>at all don't have the experience to deal with matters

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<v Speaker 3>as fast as our experienced officer. So retention is the key.

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<v Speaker 3>Keep the experienced officers get the job done quicker they can.

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<v Speaker 3>They can attend to more issues.

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<v Speaker 1>So to keep the officers in the job, what do

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<v Speaker 1>you think needs to be done.

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<v Speaker 3>We need to look at the tenior policy. We need

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<v Speaker 3>to get that to get that change so that people

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<v Speaker 3>can settle down and decide on a career path. We

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<v Speaker 3>also need to look at greater respite. The job is

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<v Speaker 3>more demanding now than every before. You can't keep flogging

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<v Speaker 3>people until the morale improves. You've got to make sure

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<v Speaker 3>that they're in a working environment that supports their family

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<v Speaker 3>life balance and their health.

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<v Speaker 2>What sort of leave do officers get in a yearly basis?

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<v Speaker 1>Is it four weeks like what you'd call a normal

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<v Speaker 1>nine to five job, because it's not a normal job.

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<v Speaker 3>No, no, So they get six weeks of leave, which

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<v Speaker 3>is made up of a number of things. So the

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<v Speaker 3>standard industry four weeks like everybody gets, but they get

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<v Speaker 3>in the additional two weeks, which is supposed to account

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<v Speaker 3>for public holidays, supposed to account for the rigors of policing,

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<v Speaker 3>and supposed to account for the demand of working varied shifts.

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<v Speaker 3>So there's not a great compensation when you think we'll

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<v Speaker 3>give you two weeks and that covers for the rigors

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<v Speaker 3>of policing. It covers for public holidays, of which there

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<v Speaker 3>is eleven this year, and it covers for shift work

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<v Speaker 3>right where there is a national instrument that awards an additional

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<v Speaker 3>week of leave for working those sort of ships.

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<v Speaker 2>Just very quickly, is it room for part time police officers?

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<v Speaker 3>Yes? Yes, we have part time police officers. We have

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<v Speaker 3>plenty of them.

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<v Speaker 2>And do they do other jobs as well?

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<v Speaker 4>So I want to do fifty as a police officer

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<v Speaker 4>and I want to run a garden center for the

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<v Speaker 4>other fifty.

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<v Speaker 2>Is there room for that in the police force? Is

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<v Speaker 2>there flexibility?

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<v Speaker 3>Yes, there is the secondary employment conditions and obviously that

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<v Speaker 3>would vary. It certainly wouldn't want you in the security

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<v Speaker 3>industry if you're a police officer, wouldn't want you working

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<v Speaker 3>in a lone supremacist if you're if you're a police officer.

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<v Speaker 3>So those those things have some restrictions, and.

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<v Speaker 4>There is no age restrictions, right, Okay, Well, I'd love

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<v Speaker 4>to ask the question of the public do they see

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<v Speaker 4>enough police officers around the beat? And we'll ask that

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<v Speaker 4>question right now, Dave, thanks your time, Dave Flarherty. There

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<v Speaker 4>w a police union president