The Ministry of the Civil Service announced a press conference concerning the negotiations on Monday afternoon. The Minister for the Civil Service Marc Hansen was at the conference alongside Minister of Internal Security François Bausch, police director Philippe Schrantz, and representatives of the police trade unions.
The main issues concerned those who have to work overtime within the police force as well as work in the form of shifts. Many police officers are affected by the issue because of police understaffing issues. Bausch promised that over the next few years, the police would see 'substantially more people' hired.
The discussions have been ongoing since the application of an EU-wide working hours directive, which introduced so-called savings accounts. However the legislation did not account for a number of exceptions within the public service, which affect police officers working in shifts, providing continuous presences, and working overtime.
The issue all occurred with the background of the police's acute understaffing, which in turn means many police officers are working overtime. Without legislative exceptions, overtime may not have been legal.
To deal with both issues, the involved parties signed two agreements: one providing exceptions to the EU directive and the other focusing on intense recruitment for the police. Bausch said the ministry would work on a recruitment plan. According to Hansen, the situation would not change in a day and officers would only see changes once the recruitment plan is in action.
The other agreement stipulates compensation measures for overtime. Schrantz praised the agreement, which would allow police officers to fulfil their duty. The trade unions also were in agreement, saying the time spent negotiating was well worth it.
Increased recruitment would see further development of the police school, which will include the construction of a new building. The hourly value of on-call work will rise by 10%, the home-assistance allowance will be doubled, and police officers will be compensated for short-notice plan changes.
