Glenroy Sinclair, Staff Reporter
THE MORE than 6,000 rank-and-file members of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) are threatening to stage a massive industrial action.
This, according to several delegates of the Police Federation who spoke with The Gleaner yesterday.
Reports are that the planned protest action is expected to last for over two days.
"We have to act within the guideline of the Constabulary Force Act," said one delegate.
Under the Constabulary Force Act, Section 6 states that every officer, sub-officer or constable who absents himself from duty without leave for over 48 hours, and without satisfactory explanation, shall be held automatically to have vacated his position.
MASSIVE SICK-OUT
A member of the federation's Central Executive, who spoke with The Gleaner on the terms of anonymity, said he was expecting at least 80 per cent of the rank-and-file officers to participate in the protest action. The Police Federation represents policemen and women between the ranks of constables to inspectors.
Up to yesterday, it was unsure what form the protest action would take, as some members claimed they were not advised as to how they should account for their time. When members of the federation staged a massive sick-out in May, Police Commissioner Lucius Thomas said at the time that contingency plans were in place to deal with the issue.
BENEFIT NEGOTIATIONS
The Police Federation and the Government have been involved in wage-and-fringe benefit negotiations for more than a year and are yet to arrive at an agreement. Reports are that the federation is demanding a one-off payment of $200,000 to each member.
Initially the Government had offered $30,000, but increased the sum to $40,000, after consultation with the Jamaica Confederation of Trade Unions (JCTU). This was necessary as the payment would have been in breach of the Public Sector Memorandum of Understanding.
