Dear Members,
The dispute between the NCOA and the NCA on how Recruitment and Retention Allowance (RRA) payments were administered to those who are or have been supporting CSERB (Op Anchorwise) has ended.
On the 11th August 2025 I met with NCA Director General Capabilities and presented the equal pay claim that officers who are not formally surged to CSERB (known at Cat B) have the same entitlement to RRA payments as those who are formally surged (Cat A).
I have now received formal correspondence from the NCA who confirm that
'some officers within both groups are undertaking essentially the same duties. Although there are different line management and tasking requirements for both Cat A and Cat B officers, the Agency are not convinced this is a reasonable basis on which to refuse RRA payments for Cat B officers, many of whom, like Cat A officers, have been undertaking whole days of CSERB tasks on a regular and frequent basis ’
As a result, CSERB SLT and NCA Pay Team will arrange a process to make retrospective RRA payments to Category B officers who self-identify that they were wholly engaged in CSERB work for complete shifts (in the same way as Cat A officers). The outcome from our surveys is that most of the officers who will benefit from back payments are NCOA members. If you feel that are entitled to a payment and are not contacted directly by the NCA in the next few weeks, we advise you to contact CSERB.
It was clear from our discussions with the NCA that they accepted our assertions that many of our members were spending regular entire shifts on CSERB tasks, in much the same way as Cat A officers. It was also clear that work undertaken by Cat B officers was now materially different to what was originally envisaged, as a result the CSERB SLT will now work up a revised system for surging staff to CSERB that is in line with current policy. Especially as all parties accepted that dealing with the backlog of CSERB referrals remains an NCA priority.
Regards,
Steve Bond
NCOA General Secretary.