JUNIOR COPS IN 7-YR SALARY RESTRUCTURING WAIT

MBABANE – The SiSwati adage ‘kute fecela wamfenyana’ appears to be true for junior officers in the Royal Eswatini Police Service (REPS) and His Majesty’s Correctional Services (HMCS).

For seven years now, there has been a significant gap in the pay scale of the junior officers compared to the seniors after a salary restructuring exercise that was supposed to review all officers’ salaries was only applied to benefit those at the top.

The restructuring exercise was supposed to be in two phases; with the senior officers being the first in line and then followed by the juniors, but only the first phase was implemented.

In July 2014, the Ministry of Public Service issued Circular No.2 of 2014, which outlined the format that the restructuring would take.

“The first phase shall implement the strategic and part of tactical levels of the two institutions and is being promulgated by the circular as espoused below. The second phase shall be implemented subsequent to the implementation of the first phase and shall address the tactical and functional/operational/levels with the two institutions,” the circular stated.

structure

For the first phase, the structure and grading of the REPS was reviewed such that the number of senior superintendents was increased by seven, from 16 to 23; assistant commissioners were also increased by seven, from nine to 16; there was then the creation of a new grade of senior assistant commissioner and six were appointed into this rank; and then the position of deputy commissioner was reviewed to that of deputy national commissioner and the number of officers in this rank was maintained at four. There also remained one national commissioner.

This saw the salary scale of the senior superintendents hiked by four per cent; those promoted from senior superintendent to assistant commissioner realised a pay increase of 22.5 per cent; the six who were moved from the position of assistant commissioner to the newly-created rank of senior assistant commissioner realised a pay rise of about 8.99 per cent; the four deputy commissioners whose rank was reviewed to that of deputy national commissioner had their pay increased by 5.9 per cent; and the national commissioner had his salary increased by 9.99 per cent. 

The restructuring resulted in the number of senior police officers (between senior superintendent to national commissioner) increasing from 37 to 53.

What was happening at the REPS was also taking place at the HMCS, where the same salary increment and grading was being implemented.

At the HMCS, the number of superintendents was increased by eight, from 15 to 23; assistant commissioners went up by eight, from 10 to 18; four officers were appointed into the newly-created rank of senior assistant commissioner; the rank of deputy commissioner was reviewed to that of deputy commissioner general; and that of the commissioner was reviewed to commissioner general.

This led to the number of senior officers (between senior superintendent and commissioner general) increasing by 20, from 29 to 49.

As if that was not enough, for both the REPS and HMCS, the number of senior officers was increased even further and their salaries were also hiked to the current pay structure.

For the REPS, the number of senior officers further increased by 22, from the 53 recommended in the 2014 restructuring to the current 93 officers as reflected in the Government Establishment Register for the 2020/2021 financial year. The second drastic increase in the number of senior REPS officers saw the complement of senior superintendents rising by 15, from 26 to 41; followed by the creation of the rank of assistant commissioner, which has 18 officers occupying it; there was then the creation of the rank of senior assistant commissioner, which had 13 officers appointed to it; there was also creation of a new rank referred to as assistant national commissioner, which had six officers appointed to it; the number of officers occupying the rank of deputy national commissioner was increased by six, from four to 10; an additional rank of senior deputy national commissioner was also created and four officers were appointed to it; and then the national commissioner completes the senior ranked police officers.

At the HMCS, the number of senior officers has been increased by a further 32 officers, from 49 to 77.

The number of senior superintendents was increased by two, from 23 to 25; assistant commissioners were increased by five, from 18 to 23; senior assistant commissioners were increased by six, from four to 10; there was then the creation of a new rank known as chief assistant commissioner, into which eight officers were appointed; deputy commissioner generals were doubled from three to six officers; a new rank of commissioner was also created and four officers were appointed to it; and the commissioner general completes the list.

salaries

All these senior officers, both at REPS and HMCS enjoy high salaries, with the National Commissioner/Commissioner General earning E53 226.75 a month (E638 721 a year); senior deputy national commissioners are paid E50 692.08 a month (E608 305 annually); deputy national commissioners earn E48 388 a month (E580 656 annually); assistant national commissioners are each remunerated at E44 953.66 a month (E539 444 a year); senior assistant commissioners are each paid a monthly salary of E43 512.42 (E522 149 annually); and assistant commissioners are each paid a monthly salary of E39 919.75 (E479 037 a year).  As these senior officers enjoyed their improved salaries that came with the restructuring exercise that came with Circular No.2 of 2014, the junior officers remained disadvantaged as the second phase was not implemented.

Instead, the junior officers depended on the cost of living adjustments (CoLA) that were awarded to civil servants after prolonged strikes and negotiations between government and Public Sector Associations (PSAs).

It is to be noted that the junior officers are not members of the PSAs as they are not allowed to unionise, hence they have no bargaining power. There were two CoLA awards in 2015 and 2020 and a salary review in 2016, which became popularly known as dvuladvula, that improved the junior officers’ salaries; the senior officers also benefitted from these salary adjustments on top of the improvements that came with the restructuring. Before these, junior officers in the police service holding the rank of Constable I were paid E4 267 a month; and those in the Constable II rank were earning a minimum of E7 056 and a maximum of E9 207.

The majority of officers in the police service occupy the rank of Constable; in the 2020/2021 Government Establishment Register it is shown that out of the total number of 5 985 officers currently in the REPS, 4 451 occupy the rank of Constable, which is 74 per cent of the police service. Following the 2015 CoLA and 2016 dvuladvula, these junior officers had their basic salaries increased to E5 313 a month for Constable I and, for Constable II, a minimum of E8 785 and a maximum of E11 462.

They went on these salaries until 2020 when the 2020 CoLA increased their pay by three per cent, which currently sees those under Constable I earning E5 472 while those in the rank of Constable II are now paid between E9 048 and E11 806 monthly.

Sergeants, before the 2015 CoLA and 2016 dvuladvula, earned between E9 483 and E10 993 a month; after the 2015/2016 their pay rose to between E11 825 and E13 709; and after the 2020 CoLA they are currently paid between E12 180 and E14 120 a month.

Inspectors were earning between E13 173 and E14 297 before 2015/2016 CoLA; and had this hiked to between E16 426 and E17 828 after 2015/2016; and they are now paid between E16 919 and E18 361 after implementation of the 2020 CoLA. Superintendents were earning between E20 801 and E27 720 a month before 2015/2016; and had this improved to between E25 939 and E28 411 after 2015/2016; and, subsequent to the 2020 CoLA, they are now remunerated at a minimum E26 717 and a maximum E29 195 a month.  

The same was happening at the HMCS, where junior officers in the ranks of Warder II, Warder I, Warder Inspector, Sergeant, Sergeant Instructor, Chief Officer, Assistant Superintendent and Superintendent were left out of the restructuring and depended on CoLA awards to civil servants for their salary increment.  

Deputy Police Information and Communications Officer Inspector Nosipho Mnguni, defending the failure to restructure even the junior ranks through second phase as demanded by the Circular, said the process was still ongoing and cuts across the rank stratum of the REPS ‘because during postings and deployment of police officers which happens routinely with the service, officers are posted to strategic positions in order to address specific emerging security challenges and needs’.

She said the core objectives of the restructuring exercise was to realign and re-engineer the structural make-up of the police service in order to deal decisively with emerging safety and security threats in the rapidly changing and dynamic landscape being operated in today.

accomplishment

Mnguni said the exercise was also aimed at strengthening and streamlining the command and control system of the police service to ensure efficiency in service delivery as well as the accomplishment of the organisation’s mandate.  

Another aim of the exercise, she said, was to ensure alignment of the REPS with the operational structures and systems of other police services and forces within the SADC region.

“To this end, the objective of the restructuring exercise was never about improving the grades and salaries of a select category of officers i.e. senior officers. The aim as already pointed out was a holistic review of the police service to ensure that it is geared for the policing challenges of today,” the Deputy PICO said. She said the widening gap between senior officers and junior officers’ remuneration was ‘a natural or a given in any salary structure’. “At present, the salary structure of the police service is a product of the 2016 Government-wide Salary Review Process. Therefore, any observed or apparent discrepancies can only be addressed through another salary review,” Mnguni said. 

She said the significant number of senior officers from the ranks of senior superintendent to national commissioner following the 2014 Circular were for addressing specific operational needs, and authority to have them in the Establishment was granted by the relevant authorities.  Adding, Mnguni said the need to add and realign ranks at various levels of the police was motivated by a desire to strengthen supervision or enhance command and control.  

“For instance, at the lower tiers of the organisation structure, a rank of Assistant Inspector was introduced as part of the restructuring process which serves as a supervisory intermediary or link between the Sergeant cadre and the Inspectorate,” she said.  On the other hand, HMCS Public Relations Officer Superintendent Gugulethu Dlamini said they were not the ones responsible for the implementation Phase 2 of the 2014 Circular.

revise

“May I request that you refer such to the Ministry of Public Service,” she said.

Hlobisile Vilakati, the Communications Officer in the Ministry of Public Service, cited the 2016 Circular (dvuladvula) as having been implemented in a bid to revise the salary grading and pay structure across government.

“The armed forces were an exception to that instrument. And therefore it was expected that all grievances be forwarded within 30 days after issuance of the aforementioned circular,” she said.

 That notwithstanding, Vilakati said government did conduct a salary review every five years and it is during such exercise that anomalies in widening salary gaps are corrected. Asked if the ballooning of the senior officers’ salaries over the past seven years would be sustained by government, the communications officer said government ‘has over the years been cognisant and in admission of the ballooning wage bill hence some intervention strategies that have been effected to mitigate the situation. She said among these is the freeze of overtime through Circular No.8 of 2010 and implementation of the hiring freeze through Circular No.3 of 2018. A senior legal expert who is well acquainted with the matter said both the REPS and HMCS had meted unfairness on the junior officers.

“The Circular No.2 of 2014 is not optional but mandatory as it states that the second phase SHALL be implanted after the first phase; it doesn’t say MAY, which would have made the instrument optional,” he said. The legal eagle said the sad part was that the junior officers have no bargaining power or union representation to force government to implement the Phase 2. He opined that the courts could be their only option but noted that the junior officers might fear being at the forefront of this legal challenge because of likely victimisation by their bosses.

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