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City Press reports that the Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union (Popcru) is demanding immediate reforms to address the pressing mental health challenges faced by police officers.
The union’s call follows alarming numbers of police suicides and rising mental health concerns within the SA Police Service (SAPS). Last month two police unions revealed that more than 300 officers had committed suicide or had died in murder-suicide incidents since 2017. The SA Policing Union (SAPU) and Popcru accused the SAPS of not addressing the situation seriously. According to Popcru, the issue of police mental health was particularly pressing as crime rates were surging and officers faced unprecedented levels of violence, trauma and stress. Popcru’s Thulani Nsele warned on Thursday: “Crime and violence in South Africa is rampant, placing officers’ lives in constant threat – especially given the current levels of understaffing. The horrific situations they encounter and the dangers they face working at the frontlines every day are taking a very heavy toll on their mental well-being. Meanwhile, the psychological support they receive is completely inadequate and current policies and systems often work to undermine mental health rather than protect it.” The SAPS recently reported that it had only 621 health and wellness employees to support its workforce. Additionally, the majority of its members were not aware that the SAPS had a wellness programme, did not understand what services it provided, or did not know how to get in contact with support staff.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Abram Mashego at City Press (subscriber access only)
Get other news reports at the SA Labour News home page