The WA Police Union says about 20 officers are likely to be stood down for refusing to be vaccinated against COVID-19 before Wednesday's deadline, but they could continue to receive full pay for months.
Speaking after the opening of the union's annual conference in Perth, the union's acting president Mike Kelly said the threat of an immediate loss of pay for officers still not vaccinated by the December 1 deadline had been dropped.
Mr Kelly downplayed the impact the loss of staff would have on the 7,000-strong police force.
He said 150 officers currently on leave had not been vaccinated, but the number of unvaccinated officers currently working was much lower.
"My understanding … was there was 20 that the agency was aware of that just aren't going to get vaccinated," he said.
He said the officers were entitled to be paid while an investigation took place.
"We don't want to lose any members, but ultimately it's come down to personal choice, and we've been advocating for their employment conditions," he said.
Pay could continue for months
Mr Kelly said the union had successfully lobbied the police executive to allow unvaccinated officers to be stood down on full pay while an investigation was launched.
He said this meant they could continue to be paid while off duty for an extended period of time.
"As of the 1st of December, unvaccinated officers will not be able to enter a police premises as per the direction, [but] how long the disciplinary process occurs is a question for the WA police force," Mr Kelly said.
"It's up to the WA Police Force to probably answer the questions on how quickly they tend to deal with our members."
Unvaccinated officer takes legal action
Meanwhile, WA Police Minister Paul Papalia said he thought an unvaccinated police officer who had launched legal action in the Supreme Court against the government's vaccine mandate was unlikely to win his case.
"I suspect it's going to be unsuccessful," he said.
"What some people are doing in the face of this pandemic and measures that are being undertaken by government to keep everyone safe doesn't surprise me.
Mr Kelly used his speech at the conference to lobby for a bonus payment and extra annual leave for police officers as a reward for their work in keeping the virus out of WA.
The measure was adopted in Queensland where officers received a one-off $1,250 payment and two weeks of extra leave.
Mr Kelly said WA officers deserved to be rewarded in a similar fashion.
