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| Why are
the Fire Brigades Union asking for a new pay deal? Firefighters have their pay set by a formula that is ¼ of a century old and doesn’t give Firefighters a fair wage for the job they do today. Why isn’t the pay fair? Firefighters are classed as manual workers yet they train for 4 years to qualify. They do not believe they are unskilled. But surely Firefighters receive additional pay for working nights, unsocial hours etc? Firefighters receive no shift payments, weekend allowances, or payments for working night shifts unlike the majority of workers who do a shift system. But Firefighters do get a lot of time off don’t they? The majority of Firefighters work the shift below and their working week is set at 42 hours not the 38 or less that is a standard working week in industry. Firefighters Working Week:
New week starts again on Tuesday moving the whole shift system forward by one day a week. Are Firefighters often in dispute? No. Firefighters have only ever had one national strike in their history and any dispute since that in 1977 has been over preventing closures of fire stations or the reduction of fire engines, both of which affect public safety. So what exactly does a Firefighter earn? A fully qualified firefighter after 4 complete years of training will earn £21,531 with the minimum starting pay set at under £17,000. Isn’t £21,531 a fair wage? Firefighters have 11% of their wages deducted from their pay for their pension scheme for when they retire at a maximum of 55 or 60 for officers. They also work more hours per week than normal so their hourly pay is in fact lower and so is their take home pay. Wouldn’t an extra payment help Firefighters who cannot afford to live in some areas of the country? Firefighters do the same job protecting the public across the country and the risks they face are identical from Cornwall to Scotland. Firefighters should all be paid a fair rate for the job they do and that job is identical no matter where they serve. But surely Regional Pay would help Firefighters? Paying a higher rate in one area simply means there is a lower incentive to work in another where pay is lower. This isn’t fair on either the Firefighters themselves or people living in an area where their Firefighters are paid less than others. Firefighters deserve a decent basic wage not add-ons that would simply result in an even greater movement of Firefighters around the country as has happened in other occupations where regional pay has been introduced. Don’t some Firefighters work on their three days off? Some Firefighters do have to work on some of their rest days to earn enough to live where they are sent to work. A fair rate of pay would mean they didn’t have to work their rest days to make ends meet. Some fire brigades even offer work like this as they know Firefighters are underpaid. So Firefighters employers recognise Firefighters are underpaid too? Fire Service employers have agreed to a joint approach to the government to ensure Firefighters are paid fairly for the job they do. Has the Firefighters job changed much since their last pay formula claim in 1977? Firefighters today face all sorts of incidents from terrorist acts to chemical spills, from car and rail crashes to property fires. Firefighters also undertake safety inspections, do community education programmes for children and adults, and still complete their training courses and exams as well as fitness training and lectures on a daily basis. The training of a Firefighter continues throughout their 30-year career. How deep does the problem run in the fire service? There are Firefighters sleeping on fire station floors and commuting very long distances literally across the country as they cannot afford to live on their wages. What will Firefighters do if they don’t win their demands? Firefighters believe their call for a fair wage which recognises their skills is long overdue. They have continued to serve the public as dedicated as always but simply cannot afford to carry on as they are. A stockbroker can earn a bonus payment in a single year which would equal the pay of a Firefighter working for 47 years. Firefighters just want to be treated fairly and don’t want to take any industrial action but will if forced to just as they would if public safety is put at risk from station closures for example. What is a fair rate of pay for Firefighters? A rate of pay which recognises that Firefighters have to train for 4 years to qualify and which reflects a fair wage for people who put their lives on the line and their skills to the test every time they arrive at their stations for another shift. Dean Mills Regional Secretary Thank you for taking the time to read this. If you have any queries or want any more information please contact me on:
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