1,473 policemen in judicial protest against Commissioner

Alexander Galea

Oct 28th 2009, 22:34

Mr. Frendo, perhaps it is you who should wake up unless of course you are a civil servant. I never said they should not get paid, however I bothered to read and comment not only about the article but also about the complaints below.

Chris Frendo

Oct 28th 2009, 20:56

@Alexander Galea

"In the private sector, extra hours is the norm so I am not impressed by anyone working 46 hours per week. Wake up and get real"

I think it's you that need to wake up, becase you missed the point completely. The police work 46 hours per week, and they're not complaining about that. They are complaining about the unpaid hours which they work over and above the 46 hours; sometimes making it a 60 hour week or more.

If you have issues with the governmet or the public sector take it to the relevant authortes. But such a situation in Europe of 009 is unthinkible.

Alexander Galea

Oct 28th 2009, 20:23

I could not help not commenting listening to half the police corp. playing the victims. Whilst it is definitely not right that they are not paid for overtime due, it clearly shows that they have no clue what employees in the private sector who pay their salaries do. The country has a lethargic civil service including a good percentage of the police corp. Probably the lethargic ones are those who complain and scream most because motivated people proud of their job still keep on pushing. Whilst police retire after 30 years (on average by the age of 50), have a guaranteed job irrelevant of economic situations and get a service pension, private sector employees who pay for a largely inexistent service have to struggle to retain their jobs till the age of 65 and then hope to get an adequate pension. In the private sector, extra hours is the norm so I am not impressed by anyone working 46 hours per week. Wake up and get real, stop whining and start doing your job properly. If you don't like the job, quit and find something else.

Bernice Bruno

Oct 27th 2009, 12:27

Anthony Dimech,huwa veru li kienu hafna l-membri tal-korp li wettqu dmirijiet taghhom u kif ghalqu l-25 sena servizz telqu u bdew avventura ohra fil-hajja imma huwa veru wkoll li hemm Pulizija li ghalkemm ghalqu s-servizz taghhom ghadhom jaghtu kontribut fi hdan il-korp u dawn ghadna nirringrazjawhom izjed ghax ghalkemm ghandhom penzjoni ghazlu li jkompli jwettqu dmirhom fil-korp tal-Pulizija mhux ghall-flus ,ghax la taghlaq ma tantx hemm differenza bejn li tibqa dar u tmur ghax -xoghol,imma ghax il-Pulizija hija marbuta ma qalbhom u parti minnhom u minn hawn nghidlilhom grazzi.

clare spiteri

Oct 27th 2009, 08:49

We value our Police force as we do our Armed Forces.They must be treated fairly and paid their due.They must also be given the authority to fully perform their duties and enforce the law.Our thanks go to them Every time that we have asked for their help in Sliema, where I live they have always been courteous and helpful.Thank you Officers and we hope you will get what you deserve.

S Vella

Oct 26th 2009, 22:57

@ Leli Caruana.
You dont know WHY? Because the Government is refusing the Police the right of having a proper and professional union, as other Police Services in Europe have. The Pledge the Former Prime Minister Dr Fenech Adami made when he was still in the opposition 23 years ago to the Police with a letter sent to every Police Officer's home is still not redeemed... The pledge amongst others, of 40hrs a week has as yet never been in force!

Joseph Borg

Oct 26th 2009, 22:52

Nisperaw li s sitwazzjoni tal membri tal korp tmur ghal ahjar.

Nispera wkoll li xi hadd jaghti kas is sitwazzjoni tal membri tal Forzi Armati. L overtime qas joholmu bih ahseb u ara jithallsu tieghu. TIL siegha b siegha meta jinata u l paga hija ferm inqas min tal korp.

L. Calleja

Oct 26th 2009, 20:24

I agree with D. Zammit. I think that it is about time that a new police commissioner is appointed. The present one has done good things but it is evident that the time for change has come.

Lawrence Cutajar

Oct 26th 2009, 17:35

All police officers are on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week irrespective of whether on duty, off duty, or vacation leave. They merit more than the peanuts that they are currently receiving. The issue is not whether overtime will be paid or not. Let the past rest and let us think as from now onwards. The police are to be treated differently from any other government department. Their work conditions differs so much to compare. The only thing for certain they are gettng in return is our critisism and false accusations against them for doing their job and protecting society.

Leli Caruana

Oct 26th 2009, 17:11

Why do Members and Ex Members of the Force have to beg and go to court to get what is their's by RIGHT?

D. Zammit

Oct 26th 2009, 17:04

Regretfully, most of the complaints of the Officers in the Malta Police Force are just scrapped and trashed by the CoP. Why can't these Govt. workers have the same rights as their counterparts in Malta and other Police forces in the EU? Why should the CoP be god almighty in the Force. Most senior officials and others feel it is ripe time for a change; maybe someone who enjoys the grace of many officers and who is younger in age with a new mentality.

Joseph Campbell

Oct 26th 2009, 16:44

Dear readers all i have to say is that we voted for EU but we are far away from standards of EU what about the time night starts at 21.00 hrs and ends at 05.00 you start back at 13.00hrs that is 8 hours from when you leave work to be back at work without mentioning when you get court duties at 09.00hrs which means less than 4 hrs of rest and than back to work till 21.30hrs and than 7hrs 30 min after back to work that means at 05.00hrs those those times comply with the EU Regulations

Ernest Vella

Oct 26th 2009, 16:29

Give our Police forces what they merit....there work is so appreciated....we hope that they are also given all the tools possible to enforce the law

A. Borg

Oct 26th 2009, 16:28

Il-problema tal-Pulizija hija li it-tajjeb kif jaghlaq 25 sena qed jitlaq ,ikollu penzjoni u jsib jahdem l-ghada waqt li l-hazin jibqa hemm wara l-25 sena servizz ikompli jaqla l-paga u l-poplu jiehu ftit li xejn minnu! M'hemm xejn li jzomm it-tajjeb li jibqa hemm! Habib tieghi pulizija li kien maghruf gewwa Rahal Gdid ghax kien xempju tal-korp ghalaq 25 sena issa u telaq u hemm li jidispjacini ghax il-korp u l-pajjiz hu li tilef u mhux hu ghax hu beda jahdem l-ghada.

R Zammit

Oct 26th 2009, 16:27

Hope that the right entity is being sued. The C of P is not the employer, not the paying organ but the Govt. is the Employer, The Minister for Home Affairs, the P.M. as head of the Civil Service (including the Police Force). What a classic occassion to debate about a possible conflict for the C of P being a member of the same Association, a member of its Executive Committee, The Head of Department, an employee of the Force itself . . lets wait and see the Court's decision...I surely agre that the members of the Force who are entitled to be paid the overtime are given whats their due.

joseph galea

Oct 26th 2009, 15:33

Why was it so easy to give ministers and entourage a hefty rise to an already good remuneration and our boys in blue have to be pushed to the limit to get what is duly theirs?
What right do the authorities have to hold back people's earnings. Who has given YOU the right to be so arrogant?
The police force are always the first to receive stop leave in whatever circumstance they are needed: whether it is the Queen of the Pope or Bobby Charlton, these are the boys and girls who have to cancel all their plans and stand to attention.
Pay them or they have every right as a working person to take any action the law allows them to OR not. They have not changed anything, the authorities did, so all is fair on level ground!
Doctor Fenech let us here you blast out on this one or is it only single mothers that match your mettle?

M.Saliba

Oct 26th 2009, 15:32

All that of you that are moaning what are the police going to be given that all of the other civil servants do not have. I as a police officer am willing to exchange my rights with whom is voluntiring for a month and then hear him speak later.

Joseph J. Meli

Oct 26th 2009, 15:07

@Mr.L.Galea: Well Mr. S. Azzopardi is right because Civil Clerks work 40 hours a week and in summer they go on half days. The Police Force do work for 46 hrs and much more without any overtime sometimes too. So that's the reason of an early retirement. And as I said previously, their work is never finished, cause if they are off duty and see a crime being taking place, or an injured person or a head-on collision, they go to give a helping hand. Some times they are supposed to finish at 9pm but if they started to investigate a crime, they might be needed to stay on for more than three hours after their time. So the Police do deserver to be given that pension at an early stage than others.

K. Tanti

Oct 26th 2009, 15:01

@ Chris Frendo
Time off in Lieu(TIL) is still being given in government departments. In Mater Dei Hospital the employee can choose to work overtime and is taken as TIL. However in health centres overtime has to be taken as TIL.
@ S Azzopardi
Even nurses work 46 hours per week and are not entitled for ealy pension.

Every emplyee has the right to be paid for what he works, thus police officers have every right to be paid for their overtime

Joseph J. Meli

Oct 26th 2009, 14:47

@Mr.L.Galea: [Continuation] This goes on so often during the six months of the election date times or after the results, or during football matches, or face riots, or public dangers, such as gunmen or robbers. So they must be left to finish their retirement after 30 years service.

The Malta Police Force needs more hands of specially trained traffic control officers (present rarely we see motor cyclist on our roads) and also that in motor car (mobile) patrol, besides having members who are expertly trained at the University of Malta in modern IT technology and others in cyber crime which will increase it's needs to investigate.

Tonio Bone

Oct 26th 2009, 14:46

Everyone should be paid for their overtime. Police men/women have loans, bills, families like all of us! Secondly their job is different to most of us too.
I am not in the police force but I have respect for the men and women that do this job as it not as easy as many seem to think. I assure you, 25 years doing their kind of work is no joke and not everyone would be up for it. They deserve their pension and they deserve to get paid their overtime.
I suggest people should try to be more objective and know some facts before they make ridiculous assumptions on here.

Joseph J. Meli

Oct 26th 2009, 14:46

@Mr.L.Galea: It is good to regulate what is due to the Police Force, but since they are doing a lot of overtime work it clear means that there is a lot of work to do but the force cannot cope with due to it's size. One must recall that the population had doubled and the Police Force had decreased in the amount that had so far joined.

This means that we do not have enough policemen to be used in our daily needs most of all patrol of our streets and other important places. Therefore, I do not agree with you to take away their pension at the age of 30 years service (before was 25) to that of by 65 years. You have to recall that the local civil clerks who get a nice pension at the age of 65 years do not do any night shifts away from their family and always risking their lives and we had many P.C. that died on duties, or have been regularly put on stop leave due to empergencies. [Continued]

S.Azzopardi

Oct 26th 2009, 14:12

@ L.Galea check facts before stating , the police work 46 hours a week NOT 40 hours like the rest , that is one reason they have an early pension , they are not being paid for the extra hours they perform after those 46 !
So get your facts right cos some are working over 50 hours a week !

L.Galea

Oct 26th 2009, 14:05

No problem, give them their overtime and then kindly regulate them like the rest of the working population to pension at the age of 65 and abolish the 25 years-of-service perk.

Joe Cordina

Oct 26th 2009, 14:04

To the two commentators before me...Yes you are both right. The police have been discriminated for far too long, others that have since left the police force are now in limbo and do not know what would be done about their right to compensation. I strongly believe that it is HHIGH time that the police be granted the right to take industrial action like is done in other countries. The are truly the underdogs in Malta when it comes to worker's rights

Chris Frendo

Oct 26th 2009, 13:36

As far as I know time in lieu in government departments was abolished by a letter circular issued by the management and personnel office, office of the prime minister. This is just a case of blatant abuse and the only reason that it has gone so far is because the Malta police force is the only (probably) European police force which is prohibited to be in a trade union.

Tonio Bone

Oct 26th 2009, 12:54

Was not 'time in lieu' a Labour invention which the PN constantly condemned in the past? Whether you are a Police Office or a normal employee, the only reason why one works overtime is to take something extra home. Free time is not compensation!
The Police lost a solid form of income with the introduction of Local Wardens, and this is having it's effect. The company that runs Local Wardens has blossomed into a security service sister company and Police Officers have to do a night watch on overtime and not get paid for it!