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Australian Federal Police (AFP) officers walked off the job at seven major airports across the country on Tuesday, but didn't publicise the action due to security concerns.
The Australian Federal Police Association (AFPA) this week ramped up its industrial action as part of a months-long pay dispute with the federal government.
"Yesterday AFP officers walked off the job in airports around the country. We were not able to draw media attention to this action for security reasons, but we know it was disruptive and costly," AFPA President Alex Caruana said.
On Wednesday, officers walked off the job at various AFP sites across Canberra for two hours as they continue to call on the government to improve their pay offer.
But the AFPA said Wednesday's action would have minimal impact on frontline policing.
"So the actions that we've taken have been very surgical and very measured, nothing that we're doing is going to put anybody in the community at risk," Mr Caruana said.
"We want to send a message to the government that the offer that's on the table is undignified and is not respecting the members or the work that they do."
This week's actions are part of a long running push to improve their enterprise agreement with the federal government.
AFP officers walked off the job at AFP headquarters in Canberra today. (ABC News: Patrick Bell)
The AFPA said a new pay deal that secures an 11.2 per cent pay rise over three years for federal public servants — including AFP officers — doesn't suit the needs of members who can't take advantage of parts of it, including provisions for working from home.
The Union is calling for a 20 per cent increase.
They also claim its members are paid less than police in other states.
"We can't continue to have our members being underpaid for the work that they do," Mr Caruana said.
"They're undervalued, and people are burning out, we are losing members to the other jurisdictions.
"It's going to come to a point where we're not going to have the police officers, we're not going to have the staff in order to keep the community safe."
In a statement, the AFP said it "respects the right of its members to take lawful industrial action that does not compromise member or community safety."
"The AFP has a dedicated workforce. While the AFP put mitigation measures in place at airports and other locations to keep the community safe, the AFP acknowledges that an overwhelming number of members chose to continue working," the AFP said.
"The AFP believes our members should get a pay rise and we are still working towards bargaining for a new EA.
"The AFP continues to bargain in good faith with all parties."
The AFPA said their industrial action will continue until they achieve concessions from the government.
"Look, this is the first step, we've got other actions on the table," Mr Caruana said.
"We are prepared to continue to fight for our members 'til the government listens to our demands."