At least four officers are pursuing discrimination claims after Police Scotland announced plans for a “clean-shaven” policy without adequate consultation, according to their professional body.
Officers are being told to shave off their beards and moustaches so they can use a particular type of protective face mask, which is face-fitted and requires the wearer to be clean-shaven.
The Scottish Police Federation (SPF) said it had been deluged with complaints about the policy, which it said was being introduced with no assessment of its impact on equality or human rights.
Police Scotland said officers and staff who could not shave for religious, cultural, disability or medical reasons would be exempted.
The SPF’s general secretary, David Kennedy, told the Guardian: “Every day we are getting more complaints about the policy. There was no equality and human rights assessment done.”
He said that while Police Scotland had said it would consult on the policy, it also announced to officers on Thursday that it would be coming into force at the end of May.
“They have clearly made a decision that they are going to bring it in, so there is a big concern how much impact the consultation will have,” Kennedy added.
Police Scotland pledged to undertake a “full consultation with all relevant staff associations” before implementation and confirmed that a full human rights impact assessment would be carried out as part of that process.
Kennedy said he had seen no substantiating data on how frequently officers needed to wear the FFP3 masks – which were first used during the Covid pandemic but were designed to protect against anything that affects the respiratory system – or how often officers had caught illnesses because they had not been wearing them.
He added that he doubted whether the policy would have been considered had there not been a stockpile of FFP3 masks left after the pandemic.
There were four ongoing employment tribunal cases relating to the policy, and other members were seeking legal advice, he said.
The assistant chief constable, Alan Speirs, said senior officers “understand the frustrations among those affected” but insisted the policy was being implemented “to protect those on the frontline”.
“Significant learning from the Covid pandemic identified that the FFP3 mask … offers the most appropriate and effective respiratory protection to officers and staff. While the risk from coronavirus has lowered, wider risks remain to those attending calls, such as fires, road accidents and chemical incidents which require PPE to be worn.
“The respiratory protective equipment policy mandates that, where it can be reasonably foreseen that an officer or member of staff will use an FFP3 mask in the course of their duties, they should be clean-shaven.”
