Australian Federal Police officers are seeking a pay rise amid calls in some parts of the world to defund constabularies.
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The federal law enforcement body is the lowest-paid police force in the country and struggles to retain officers and hire new recruits as a result, AFP Association president Alex Caruana says.
The association is seeking a 20 per cent pay bump over three years to address the issue, but the Black Lives Matter movement and highly publicised cases of police brutality have bolstered calls to defund the police across the world.
However, Mr Caruana said that would not solve the problem.
"Defunding isn't going to stop people from harming young children or using children as sex slaves, isn't going to stop organised crime bringing drugs into the country, isn't going to stop hackers from overseas stealing your money," he told AAP on Tuesday.
"If you're going to turn off the money, you may as well line up and hand the crooks your money."
Pay negotiations began on Tuesday, as part of wider public sector discussions.
Workers covered by the AFPA and the Community and Public Sector Union have already been offered 11.2 per cent over three years but both groups are pushing for more.
Mr Caruana said the AFP need higher wages and improved allowances if they are to compete with their state-based counterparts.
Queensland Police graduates, for example, earn about $25,000 more than their federal counterparts.
Young people no longer want to become police officers, he said, and those who join often leave the profession due to trauma or other psychological injuries.
Mr Caruana said the association wants the employee assistance program extended to family members of AFP officers.
"AFP appointees carry the trauma of what they've seen and then their family members carry the trauma and so on because sometimes family are the only people that can understand or truly support our members."
Greens senator David Shoebridge backed calls for a pay increase.
"All public sector workers need an increase in their real wages and this includes the AFP," he told AAP.
Australian Associated Press
