18/07/2025
Thousands of police officers are now working second jobs simply to cover their living costs, according to figures from the Police Federation of England and Wales.
More than 4,000 officers secured approval for secondary employment in 2024 – double the number recorded in 2019, data obtained under the Freedom of Information Act reveals.
South Yorkshire was one of nine force that refused to provide data or claimed it took too long to collect.
The highest individual figure came in Merseyside Police, where 372 officers reported having a second job.
In Dyfed-Powys, approvals rose from nine officers in 2019 to 287 last year, an increase of over 3,000%. There was a 503% increase in South Wales; Essex saw a five-fold rise; Cleveland recorded a 421% increase and Hampshire a 348% jump.
The PFEW has described this trend as a “damning indictment” of how far police pay has fallen.
Brian Booth, PFEW Acting Deputy National Chair, said officers were “overworked, underpaid and under threat” and that that no one should finish a demanding shift protecting the public only to head straight to another job in order to afford basic bills.
He added: “The impact on their family life or rest and recovery time is scary to think about…We need pay restoration now, and we need Chief Constables to get off the fence on pay and support their officers.”
Since 2010, police pay has fallen by 21% in real terms. New recruits start on £29,000 a year, and after six years’ service are earning up to £10,000 less than teachers or nurses with equivalent experience. With inflation and rising interest rates pushing living costs ever higher, many officers feel they have no choice but to seek additional income.
One officer serving in Wales, who spoke on condition of anonymity, described the personal impact of the crisis.
He said: “There was a time when, had I not had other employment, my wife and I would have lost our house. If I didn’t have this second income, it would be very tight. I’ve had to increase my work on the side to make up for the degradation of my police pay over the years. Having a second job has affected my sleep, my diet and my fitness levels, but I’ve had to do it.”
The PFEW is calling on the government to outline urgent plans to restore the 21% lost in real-terms pay since 2010. It argues that without meaningful action, officer welfare and public safety will continue to suffer.
Calling on forces to publish this data quarterly, Brian added: “I’m particularly annoyed that some forces told us it would take more than 18 hours to find this data. This information should be at Chief Constables’ fingertips, because it highlights financial stress directly linked to officer welfare. Don’t make us drag this out of you.”
The Federation’s Copped Enough campaign calls on the public to demonstrate support for police by joining the digital picket line: https://www.polfed.org/campaigns/copped-enough/
