Firefighters’ union in Scotland considers strike over government cuts

by Featured News

Scotland’s Fire Brigades Union consults on potential strik

: The Fire Brigades Union (FBU) is set to consult firefighters across Scotland regarding potential strike action.

This is in response to a series of budget cuts implemented by the Scottish government.

According to a report, a projected five-year flat cash budget up to 2027 has resulted in the removal of 10 wholetime fire engines.

Additionally, 150 retained fire engines are often out of service due to substantial recruitment and retention challenges.

Effects of the budget constraints in Scotland

The Scottish Fire and Rescue service indicates that they will need to save at least £14 million next year.

This could lead to a loss of 339 firefighters and 18 fire engines.

Since 2012, Scotland has witnessed a reduction of 1200 frontline firefighters.

The recent decision by the FBU marks the initial move towards strike action, a decision unanimously supported by the union’s Scottish committee. If the current trajectory continues, a formal strike ballot may be in the offing.

Pressure mounts on SNP leadership

This news comes as the SNP congregates for its party conference in Aberdeen.

It is expected to exert additional pressure on First Minister Humza Yousaf to step in and take action.

The FBU has also planned a demonstration at Holyrood on 26 October.

John McKenzie, Fire Brigades Union regional secretary, stated: “The cuts being implemented by the Scottish government are a threat to the lives, homes, and livelihoods of everyone in Scotland.

“Scotland will be deprived of the vital firefighters and equipment required to ensure the safety of its communities.

“Speaking to firefighters throughout Scotland, there’s a palpable sense of determination among members.

“Our service can’t withstand further cuts. The public will hold the SNP Government accountable if this results in strike action.”

Similarly, Matt Wrack, Fire Brigades Union general secretary, expressed: “As the SNP gathers for their conference, we have a message for the Scottish government.

“These cuts jeopardise the safety of all Scots, and the Fire Brigades Union is bound to contest them.

“Firefighters don’t decide on strike action without due consideration.

“The current stance of the Scottish government has brought us to this juncture.

“However, there’s still an opportunity for the government to change course.

“It’s imperative they heed the voices from the frontline of this essential service.”

IFSJ Comment

The ongoing situation with the Fire Brigades Union in Scotland is a significant indicator of the broader issues at play.

As the proposed cuts loom over the Scottish Fire and Rescue service, the potential repercussions on safety and service quality cannot be overlooked.

With the loss of frontline firefighters and crucial equipment since 2012, the strain on the service is evident.

The anticipated demonstration and potential strike action underscore the severity of the situation.

It is crucial for all stakeholders, especially the Scottish government, to engage in constructive dialogue, understanding the implications of further reductions and finding a balanced solution that doesn’t compromise on safety.

Fire and Security workers at HIAL Airports take industrial action

by Featured News

Arrivals and departures from all 11 Highlands and Islands Airports (HIAL) will be thrown into a state of chaos over the next three days (21-23 February) as Unite union members go on strike.

Check-in staff, baggage handlers, ground crew, security workers and fire crews will down tools for 72 hours, starting today, as they demand improvements from HIAL on the 5% pay offer.

Speaking on the latest episode of Good Morning Scotland (GMS), Shauna Wright, industrial officer with Unite Union, said: “We’re dealing with the complexities of this organisation and in itself, it brings its own difficulties but I do have to stress our members are being double hit by this because this started over 10 months ago. This is an ongoing dispute since April last year.

“It is a disgrace that the Scottish Government and HIAL haven’t brought this dispute to an end. It is within their gift to give and I would urge every member of the public affected by this to remember that our members are affected by this.

“It’s their families and it’s their friends that don’t get to hospital appointments, that don’t get the mail.”

Background

Last week, Prospect members working in Fire and Security at Highlands and Islands Airports Ltd voted to take industrial action over pay after rejecting a 5% pay offer in October 2022, The Orkney News has reported.

In a statutory ballot that closed last week (14 February) 71% voted for strike action with 84% voting for action short of a strike on a turnout of over 80%, well above the regulatory threshold of 50%.

Prospect, which represents members across all 11 HIAL airports, is currently consulting with members on the exact form and dates for industrial action.

The union warned that strike action and action short of a strike is likely to cause significant disruption across the remote and rural communities served by the airports.

Unite the union has already announced a series of strike dates in February across the Highland and Islands airports and Prospect said it fully supports Unite members in their campaign.

Fire and Security members enable the safe operation of HIAL airports, supporting vital travel links between some of the most remote communities in Scotland.

Jane Rose, Prospect Negotiations Officer said last week: “Our members in Fire and Security are increasingly frustrated at the lack of meaningful progress to resolve this dispute. They overwhelmingly rejected an unacceptable 5% offer in October but since then neither HIAL nor Scottish Government have come back to the table with any serious effort to deliver a pay increase that properly addresses the worst cost-of-living crisis in 40 years.

“Our members don’t want to go on strike, they live in these communities, and they understand the impact action will have on families, friends, local business, and tourism. But after months of delay with no progress, they have been left with no option but to take a stand. 

“Prospect will be meeting again with HIAL in the coming days but unless they move quickly to deliver a meaningful and fair offer on pay and terms and conditions they will create a spring of continual disruption for customers and visitors.”

FBU advises UK firefighters to accept renewed pay offer

by Featured News

The UK’s Fire Brigades Union has recommended that firefighters accept the revised pay offer that was issued on Wednesday (8 February) by fire service employers.

The new pay offer follows the proposal for strike action by firefighters with 88% of FBU members voting Yes to strike action on a 73% turnout, with 94% voting Yes in Northern Ireland.

The FBU had already agreed not to name strike dates while members are consulted on the offer and has set out a timetable to consult members. A hybrid online and postal ballot will open on Monday 20 February and close on Monday 6 March at 2pm.

In an email to FBU members on friday, FBU General Secretary Matt Wrack wrote: “We should all be proud of the campaign we have run to get this far. We have now moved our employers from 2% in June last year, to 5% in November, and now to 7% plus 5%.

“This achievement was only possible because of our overwhelming mandate for strike action. It is clear evidence of the value of collective bargaining and negotiation as opposed to so-called “independent” pay review bodies.”

However, he stressed that the union leadership would not “sugar-coat” the offer: “Given the current rate of inflation, 7% is another real terms pay cut for the current pay round (which runs from July 2022 to July 2023). For the following year (July 2023 to July 2024), when inflation is forecast to be lower, 5% may amount to a slight increase in real terms pay.

“The Executive Council has weighed up the positives and negatives and decided that, on balance, we recommend that members vote to accept this offer. It was honest and sober in its assessment, but it was also unanimous.

“This is your union, and it is now for you to decide whether this offer represents a good enough improvement for us to resolve this dispute.”

Final call for firefighters to cast vote in FBU pay ballot

by Featured News

The UK’s Fire Brigades Union pay ballot is set to conclude on Monday 30 January. Results from the ballot are expected late that afternoon. If firefighters vote for strike action, the UK will see its first nation-wide fire strike on pay since 2003. 

The ballot is a result of firefighters having experienced a 12% drop in real terms earnings since 2010 at around £4,000 a year on average. In the same period, around one in five firefighter jobs have been cut.  

FBU members have already rejected a below-inflation 5% pay offer in November last year, and the union opened its formal strike ballot on 5  December. 

Because of anti-strike legislation, the ballot will only give a mandate for strike action if more than 50% of the FBU’s approximately 30,000 members vote in it.   Polling shows that public support for strike action by firefighters is strong – around 2 to 1. 58% of the public back action, while only 33% oppose it.  

Matt Wrack, general secretary of the Fire Brigades Union, said: “Firefighters have faced a sustained attack on pay for more than a decade, with average pay falling by about £4,000 in real terms.   

“Our members face hazardous situations every day, and sometimes risk their health to do the job. Facing double-digit inflation and rocketing energy bills, they are now being told to put up with an even bigger real terms pay cut. Meanwhile, the UK is home to record number of billionaires.  

“People join the fire service because they want to help people and serve their community. We have been pushed to the point of balloting by a government that is refusing to listen.

“On Monday, we will learn our members’ verdict on this derisory pay offer.” 

Over two thousand firefighters and control staff descend on Westminster

by Featured News

On 6 December, over 2,000 firefighters and control staff from across the UK assembled in Westminster to protest low pay after their strike ballot opened earlier in the week.

MPs including Zarah Sultana and Jeremy Corbyn addressed the crowds, as well as FBU general secretary Matt Wrack and several FBU officials and members. After the rally firefighters and control staff marched to Parliament to lobby their MPs on the issue of pay.

The strike ballot opened on Monday 5 December and will close on Monday 30 January.

Speaking to the crowds, FBU general secretary Matt Wrack said: “You’ve turned out in your hundreds and hundreds and hundreds… I think that demonstrates the anger that is out there… they’ve found £45bn in tax cuts to give away to millionaires, but they will tell you that there’s no money for pay, that there’s no money for the fire and rescue service. Corporations enjoy record profits, some people get richer and richer and richer, and they tell us there’s no money.”

If a national strike were to take place, it would be the first national strike since pension action between 2013 and 2015 (which did not include control), and the first on pay since 2002-2003.

Picture credit: Mark Thomas

Fire Brigades Union opens strike ballot

by Featured News

The Fire Brigades Union strike ballot for firefighters and control staff has opened today (Monday 5th December) and will remain open until January 30th. The ballot will be a postal ballot only.

Firefighters and control staff are being balloted on potential strike action on a “derisory” 5% pay offer. That pay offer had recently been rejected by FBU members in a consultative ballot by 79% on a 78% turnout.

If you haven’t received your ballot paper by 19 December you should contact MembershipServices@fbu.org.uk with your name, membership number (if you have it), home address and workplace.

Matt Wrack, Fire Brigades Union general secretary, said: “Strike action will always be a last resort. But we are running out of options. Many firefighters and control staff are desperate. Some are struggling to afford for they and their families to live. It is a dreadful and very serious state of affairs. We are doing everything we can to secure a decent offer. We have held talks with and written letters to many different parties. But no such pay offer has been forthcoming.

“It is the responsibility of fire service employers and governments to pay their staff properly. That is part of their responsibility of running the fire and rescue service. We look forward to receiving a pay offer from them that addresses the cost of living crisis firefighters and control staff are living through. We have been mandated by our members to fight for pay that they can live on and will do that.”

If a national strike were to take place, it would be the first national strike since pension action between 2013 and 2015 (which did not include control), and the first on pay since 2002-2003. The ballot closes on 30 January, but members are encouraged but the FBU is encouraging members to send in their ballots due to the impacts of strikes in Royal Mail.

Labour party backs UK firefighter strike action

by Featured News

The UK’s Labour party has backed firefighter strike action at its conference last month, where a motion was passed backing firefighters on pay as they prepare to ballot for strike action. The successful conference motion has now become Labour Party policy.  

In June, firefighters received a 2% pay offer from fire service employers. This was rejected by firefighters following consultation amongst members, in July. Preparations to ballot for strike action are now underway.

Labour leader Keir Starmer had previously failed to back striking workers and advised frontbench shadow cabinet members to stay away from picket lines.

The FBU-backed motion states that: “Conference condemns the 2% pay offer made by fire employers to firefighters in June this year” and “is appalled by the 12% real-terms cut in average full-time firefighters’ pay (measured by CPI) since 2010”. It also committed “the Labour Party to vigorously campaigning alongside the FBU in defence of firefighters and their service”.

Commenting on the motion passing, FBU General Secretary Matt Wrack said: “The Labour Party must stand by workers as they fight for better pay. This is a significant step in the fight to make sure it does that.

“Firefighters are trying to protect the living standards of themselves and their families. They have seen years of disgracefully poor pay rises and have suffered from crisis after crisis, from the financial crash to austerity to the pandemic. They worked incredibly hard throughout the pandemic. Firefighters deserve fair pay and are preparing to fight for it.”

Seconding the motion in the conference hall, FBU Vice President Ben Selby said: “Firefighters, like so many represented in this room, tirelessly and bravely worked through the deadly pandemic. But what did this abhorrent ruling party do to repay them? They continued to strangle our pay… Firefighters aren’t going to sit back and take it anymore. We are preparing our fightback and when that comes in upcoming weeks we expect those that represent our class and our movement in Westminster to stand in solidarity with us and on our picket lines.”

“The motion went on to condemn the government’s recent fire and rescue service white paper, stating that “conference is appalled that the White Paper contains no plans or resources to improve the fire and rescue service”.

The motion was passed unanimously, on a show of hands.