Police starting pay rises to £32k to boost numbers

The starting salary for police officers will now be £32,163

A new pay deal for police officers has been agreed in a bid to drive recruitment and retain staff, the Isle of Man Constabulary has confirmed.

Starting salaries have increased by about £3,600 to £32,163, with the majority of existing constables receiving an annual uplift of between £2,500 and £6,500.

The rises, which will cost about £318,000, will be taken from the existing Department of Home Affairs (DHA) budget, with the approval of the Treasury.

Chief Constable Russ Foster said the uplift would make police officers' pay "more comparable with other emergency services and criminal justice partners".

Mr Foster said the force had seen "diminishing numbers of applicants to become police officers" and a recent drive saw 40 applications lead to only three successful candidates, one of whom had already sought employment elsewhere.

Previous increases saw the overall police pay budget rise by 6% in 2022, and officers received a £3,000 one-off lump sum last year while the latest pay deal was negotiated.

'Cost of living'

Home Affairs Minister Jane Poole-Wilson said the change, which has the support of the Police Joint Consultative Committee, would bring starting pay for officers "more in line with other similar roles", and would "go some way towards helping staff experiencing cost of living pressures".

The increase demonstrated an ongoing commitment to ensuring officers felt valued and that recruitment and retention in the constabulary was a "top priority", she said.

The minister said pressures on the existing workforce, which is currently operating with a shortage of about 30 officers, would be eased as vacant positions were filled.

Maintaining a strong police force would protect the "safety and security of the, island", which "underpins our quality of life" on the island, she added.

The next recruitment drive for the constabulary begins on 15 July.