Police officers worked more than one million hours of overtime last year – more than double the figure from the previous 12 months, new data shows.
A freedom of information request by the Scottish Conservatives found Police Scotland officers worked 1,074,545 hours of overtime in 2021-22 – 3.1% of all hours worked during the year.
This compares to 464,049 hours of overtime worked the previous year, which was 1.3% of all hours worked.
The figures have emerged as police officers remain locked in a dispute with the force over pay, with the Scottish Police Federation (SPF) saying the “goodwill” of staff has been withdrawn.
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This means officers have refused to start shifts early and no longer take radios home – but SPF general secretary Calum Steele said this week it would be “foolhardy” to lay out what other tactics will be employed.
The federation, which represents rank-and-file officers, recently rejected a “derisory” 3.4% pay increase.
Scottish Tory justice spokesman Jamie Greene said the overtime figures show the “dedication” of police officers.
“Shamefully, this hard work they carry out every single day is now being endangered by an SNP Government who have insulted police officers with a derisory pay offer,” he said.
“That has left officers with no choice but to withdraw their goodwill.
“These findings show that is now threatening over one million hours of time that would usually be spent keeping the public safe. It is shocking that the SNP have let their relations with the police hit rock-bottom."
Adding: “SNP ministers should be boosting police numbers to reduce the burden on current officers who are already overworked and stressed, but instead they have let officer numbers fall to their lowest level since 2008.
“Not only have they delivered insulting pay offers to our officers, SNP ministers have also broken their promise to protect police funding in the years ahead. That clearly shows keeping the public safe is no longer a priority for the SNP Government.”
A spokeswoman for Police Scotland said: “Policing is relentless and the period covered by these figures include Police Scotland’s vital role during the coronavirus pandemic and the Cop26 climate change summit.
“Increased absence through the pandemic, training delays due to Covid and Cop26, and increased retirals mean officer numbers are lower than they would otherwise have been.
“Right across the country, officers and staff are working incredibly hard to maintain effective policing for all our communities and the organisation is deeply grateful for all their hard work. It is important our people are rewarded for work in line with their terms and conditions.
“We are prioritising support into our contact, command and control (C3) division, into our response capability and into public protection and we are actively recruiting officers now, with a supporting campaign in place.”
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Commenting, a Scottish Government spokesman said the deployment of officers is a matter for the Chief Constable.
He added: “Officer numbers are favourable relative to elsewhere in the UK – with around 32 officers per 10,000 population in Scotland compared to around 23 in England and Wales.
“Police officer pay has been negotiated for many years through the Police Negotiating Board (PNB), which includes Police Officer Staff Associations, the Scottish Police Authority, Police Scotland, and the Scottish Government.
“The PNB process is ongoing in relation to pay for 2022/23, and we await the outcome of those discussions.”
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