About 20 staff at Warragul Police Station walked off the job for 30 minutes on Friday afternoon.
Holding a sign "Breaking Point", police officers raised a raft of issues including understaffing, unpaid work and draconian IT systems whilst expressing concerns about the future.
Police Association delegate leading senior constable Glenn Redenbach said only 37 per cent of Victoria Police staff were frontline uniformed officers.
And, with 1000 vacancies and 700 staff on long-term leave - many on the frontline - it was time for action.
However, leading sen const Redenbach emphasised the current, and any further action, wouldn't endanger the community.
With a vast majority of police staff living locally, he said "it is first and foremost our priority to keep our community safe."
Police Association spokesperson Paul O'Regan and Member for Narracan Wayne Farnham addressed the group outside Warragul Police Station.
"This is a chance to stand up to the government and show that we mean business," Mr O'Regan said. "This one act sends a powerful message."
Mr Farnham said he supported the stop work and understood concerns.
"You guys are under a lot of pressure," he said. "I know you are doing it tough."
Leading senior constable Redenbach said the stop work - the first since 2009 - was not all about obtaining a pay rise. However, he said good pay and conditions were required to get good people into the force and retain them.
"We've just got to make this career attractive as a long-term option," he said.
As well as losing veteran members and their knowledge, he said physical and psychological entry standards had dropped "just to fill the quotas."
Unpaid work is a major issue highlighted across this stop work action.
Leading senior constable Redenbach said police officers were expected to start 15 minutes before and finish 15 minutes after each shift to handover and sign in or out equipment.
"Victoria Police have never had a dedicated time for that handover to take place," he said.
"You turn up early and do it in your own time. "They can't ask people to work for free."
Member for Eastern Victoria Melina Bath said police officers wanted to be tackling crime, not locked in an arm wrestle with Premier Jacinta Allan.
"Our police put their lives on the line to help keep us safe - it's outrageous the Allan Labor Government will not sit down and sort out this mess," Ms Bath said. "The Victorian Nationals are calling for an immediate resolution to the police pay dispute and a greater prioritisation of public safety in the face of worsening crime."
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Police say they are at "breaking point"
Dec 17 2024
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