Fire Brigades Union:

Following the employers U-Turn on the agreed 7% pay increase for firefighters and control staff effective from 7th November the Executive Council of the FBU issued the following statement tonight:

The Recall Conference on 12th June 2003 agreed the Pay and Conditions Agreement 2003.

Stage 1 has been implemented.

Stage 2 has produced a Joint Position Statement which has been agreed by the Fire Service Employers. The FBU’s Executive Council have agreed that it could form an agreement for the implementation of Stage 2.

The Employers decision to pay the 7% contained in Stage 2 in two stages albeit the second 3.5% backdated, is the Executive Council believe in contravention of the June agreement.

The FBU’s Executive have, formally requested following their meeting last week that the Employers reconsider their position on this matter. The Employers have reconsidered their position and have no intention of altering their position on the staged payment of 7%.

The Executive Council believe that the FBU membership should now be balloted on whether the proposal made by the Employers to make the 7% payment in two stages of 3.5% immediately and 3.5% backdated following verification and the conclusion of the outstanding negotiations is acceptable to them.

If this proposal is not acceptable to the Union’s membership the Executive Council would organize a lawful ballot for further industrial action. The result of this consultative ballot could be known in two weeks.

Dean Mills the Regional Secretary said “Our Executive Council are seeking the opinion of firefighters and control staff over the employers reneging on the binding agreement which concluded our recent dispute. The Executive Council are to ballot for industrial action if the phased payments are found to be unacceptable. Industrial action has many forms and it is far too early to say what form of industrial action this might be if we are forced to a ballot due to our national employers U-Turn”

For further information contact

Dean Mills, mob 07956 502585, Regional Office on 01494 513034, email:deanmills@hotmail.com