Queensland Police Union members revolt against president over wage deal

Queensland Police Union boss Shane Prior faces a leadership crisis as members threaten to oust him over a contentious wage agreement made with the state government without consultation.

Queensland Police Union president Shane Prior. Picture: Liam Kidston

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Murmurs of plans to dump the head of the Queensland Police Union are mounting after he brokered a “disappointing” wage deal with the Crisafulli government without the consultation of members.

A push is coming from within the metro south branch of the union to have QPU president Shane Prior removed after he agreed to take the state wage offer this week after rubbishing it as “not good enough” and “insulting” to the state’s more than 12,000 police officers.

The $562.3m agreement marks the first public service enterprise bargaining agreement the Liberal National Party government has brokered during this term, and is the largest deal the police union has ever brokered.

All frontline officers secured $8000 in retention bonuses over the life of the three-year agreement, alongside regional bonuses, 5 per cent lifts in night shift loading and double time for overtime, all of which is on top of the state wage offer of 3 per cent in 2025 and 2.5 per cent over each the following two years.

It is understood, the deal will equate to payrise of 20 to 40 per cent for many officers over the life of the agreement once all bonuses and penalties are factored in.

The QPU initially told members it would be fighting for annual pay rises of 8 per cent per annum on top of additional benefits, in package that would have cost the taxpayer in excess of $1bn.

Mr Prior made the in-principle agreement with the state government on Monday before standing alongside Mr Crisafulli to make the announcement on Tuesday morning. The offer was not canvassed to members before the stand-up, which led to fiery comments on the QPU president’s post about the deal. The comments were turned off on a similar message on the union’s official own page, and of the 732 people to react to the post, 641 people indicated they were angry.

“Good idea to consult members before shaking a politician's hand,” one person wrote, while others labelled it “disappointing” and “deeply troubling.”

Mr Prior apologised for not communicating better with members on Thursday.

“I know it has caused a significant amount of emotion with our membership, but we’re looking to remedy that straight away,” he told reporters.

“We are a democracy in the Queensland Police Service and every member will have the opportunity to cast their ballot. If, after the roadshow around the state, if they if members don’t wish to support the deal and vote it up, then they’ve got the opportunity to vote.”

From Monday, the QPU president will visit branches across the state to spruik the deal ahead of a statewide vote in September, starting in Logan.

Mr Prior refused to respond to suggestion he may face on impending vote of no confidence

Late on Wednesday night, the union emailed a calculator to members to help them see how they would individually benefit. However, some members have raised concerns about the accuracy of the calculations.

The Queensland Nurses and Midwives Union are currently in conciliation with the government in the Industrial Relations Commission, alongside the state’s teachers. Both groups are undertaking protected industrial action. Discussions with the Queensland Professional Firefighters’ Union are ongoing.