Scots cop gets £75,000 in back-pay as landmark legal ruling leaves Police Scotland top brass expecting £3million ‘on call’ bill
The judgment allowed police officers to claim up to £250 for every shift they were on call
A COP got £75,000 in back-pay after a legal ruling saw 15 officers pick up nearly £400,000 for owed overtime.
Another bobby received £54,010 after the landmark judgment allowed them to claim up to £250 for every shift they were on call.
The overdue money is for when they were posted away from home and “held in reserve” while off duty.
David Kennedy, general secretary of the Scottish Police Federation, said: “It may appear to be a lot of money but this is money that officers worked for and are due.”
In the last year Police Scotland paid out £370,982 — with one cop getting a £74,058 backdated windfall.
Top brass are now facing a bill of more than £3million as the Federation victory lets officers make claims going back to 2012 and more payouts are expected.
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They were sparked by a test case brought by armed Royal Protection officer Thomas Barnes.
He guarded the Queen and other members of the Royal Family at Balmoral, Aberdeenshire, in 2015 and was put up in a nearby hotel.
Constable Barnes argued he was still on call as he was not permitted to return home. He complained to bosses about overtime payments being blocked.
Backed by the Federation, he asked for a judicial review of the denied pay and won the case at the Court of Session in Edinburgh last year.
Mr Kennedy said “held in reserve” payments had been a long-running issue for officers prior to the single force being launched in 2013.
He said: “This goes way back to previous forces. We have repeatedly tried to raise this issue.”
It is understood officers can claim up to £250 per shift, depending on their rank and length of service.
Assistant Chief Constable Mark Williams said: “These payments follow the judgement by Lady Wise.
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“We have worked with the Scottish Police Federation to establish a procedure and consideration of officers’ claims and these are now being paid.”
Last year, spending watchdog Audit Scotland revealed the force’s total debt is on course to reach £188million by 2020/21.
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