PRESIDENT OF the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service Social Welfare Association (TTPSSWA) Sgt Anand Ramesar says if Government fails to give police officers a 40 per cent salary increase, cops will be working to rule.

Ramesar said he was not convinced police officers would get the 40 per cent increase they requested when the association's executive met with Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar last week at her St Clair office.

Ramesar said the Prime Minister instructed Finance Minister Winston Dookeran to instruct the CPO, Stephanie Lewis, to resume negotiations on September 10, two days after the budget is read on Wednesday.

Dookeran and Lewis were both present at the meeting which was called by Persad-Bissessar after the association threatened to boycott the Independence Day parade if outstanding issues facing its membership were not adequately addressed. One of the issues was salary negotiations, another was the manner in which former acting commissioner of police James Philbert was leading the Police Service.

In an interview with the Sunday Express on Friday at his office at the Besson Street Police Station, Port of Spain, Ramesar said:

"The feedback that I am getting, it does not appear that the Government is willing to put the 40 per cent as it is. Having met with the CPO and the Finance Minister, I am not convinced that there is a 40 per cent increase in the salaries.

"They have not indicated what they are offering, but I am saying that I am not convinced that there is a willingness to give us what were are asking for."

Ramesar warned that it would be a "hard fight" between the Government and the association if its demands were not met.

"Having heard from the Minister of Finance and the CPO, it's going to be a hard fight and struggle for us to receive a compensation package that respects and places value on the job that we are doing."

He said if this outstanding issue was not properly addressed, the association's membership was not prepared to work with Canadian Dwayne Gibbs, the next commissioner of police, and his deputy, Jack Ewatski, who would be raking in each over $100,000 per month in salary.

"If we are going to work the extra mile and do anything beyond the parameters of our duties, then our salary issue must be first addressed, and we have made it a prerequisite.

"We stand firm and strong on that position. We are not going to relent in our position. We are going to continue to agitate. We will do what we can within the legal parameters to ensure that our situation does not go unaddressed," Ramesar said.

"We are not prepared to bend over backwards, and we are not prepared to work outside the legal hours.

"We are prepared to implement our legal position, and we are looking at the ILO (International Labour Organisation) convention, the OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Authority, Police Service Regulations, and we are going to enforce them," Ramesar said.

The last time police received salary increases was in 2007.