PENSIONS –Executive recall decision imminent
Friday EC will decide on calling conference to debate industrial action over Government’s proposed detrimental changes
The FBU Executive Council will this Friday discuss the Union’s reaction to the Government’s plans to make detrimental changes to our pensions.
The Government’s proposals will affect the pension and related rights of all existing members.
They will:
- Worsen the arrangements for ill-health retirements (not due to service) for all existing members;
- Alter the arrangements for those forced to retire because of an injury received in the course of duty for all existing members;
- Increase the age at which many members would be able to retire.
These proposals amount to a significant attack on pension and related rights, rights which FBU members have been paying for since joining the Service.
Despite the efforts of the FBU and other public sector unions, it is clear the ODPM fully intends to drive through its detrimental changes to the FPS and LGPS, and the introduction of weaker schemes for new entrants to both schemes.
In addition, we are the only 999 service which has not been offered ring-fencing of retirement age for existing members.
FBU members need to consider taking industrial action.
We are not alone: The FBU anticipates co-ordinating any action with over a million other workers.
What you should do
Your brigade officials will need your mandate when the recall Conference takes place. Ensure that your branch meets and be there to make your voice heard.
Retained firefighters take pension battle to Lords
The House of Lords began today hearing the case put by retained firefighters who are battling for equal pension and sick pay rights.
The final outcome will impact on retained firefighters in Fire and Rescue Services across the UK.
The case centres on the exclusion of retained firefighters from the Firefighters’ Pension Scheme and worse treatment under the sick pay scheme. They claim they are being treated differently because they are part-time workers and that this is unlawful.
Fairness & Justice
The Union, which is backing the test case, says it is about securing fairness and justice for every retained firefighter in the country. Without retained firefighters most areas of the country would not have a full fire service and some would have none at all.
The test case is being taken by 12 retained firefighters, 6 from Kent and 6 from Berkshire. 12,000 cases were originally started in employment tribunal in 2001 and whittled down to these 12 ‘lead’ cases.
The Union previously lost the case in the Court of Appeal on 2 July 2004 when the court accepted the employers’ arguments that retained firefighters did not do the same or broadly similar work and rejected the appeal. It found that wholetime firefighters had “measurable additional job functions” including education and preventative work.
FBU General Secretary Matt Wrack said: “This case is about securing fairness and justice for thousands of retained firefighters across the UK. They are first class firefighters and they should not be given second class employment rights.
“Retained firefighters have worked in the front line at almost every major incident. Huge areas of this country rely on retained firefighters and when the public are being rescued they don’t stop to ask your employment status.”
The union is represented by leading employment lawyers Thompsons solicitors, Robin Allen QC and barrister Martin Seaward.
Annual conference postponed
The Executive Council has decided that Annual Conference 2006 be postponed. A Sub-Committee of the Executive Council will now consider a number of options for alternative arrangements. These options will be presented to the Executive Council in February for consideration.
Among the factors which were considered in making this decision the most urgent was the need for the Executive Council to consider a Recall Conference in early 2006 to discuss the issue of Pensions.
Audit commission report misses the point: 9/10 rescued alive from fires
The Union has accused the Audit Commission of missing the point about the fire and rescue services in a report to be published tomorrow. The union says the fire service is carrying out significantly more rescues with nine out of ten people trapped in fires being rescued alive.
The union will carry out a more detailed review of the report once it has had time to assess all of its contents and seek the views of members in individual brigades.
Record number of rescues
FBU General Secretary Matt Wrack said: "Once again the Audit Commission has missed the real point about what the fire service is here to do and this report could cause unnecessary alarm to the public. We are carrying out record numbers of rescues and save nine out of ten people trapped in fires.
“Rescues are playing a key role in driving down fire deaths to a 45-year low. The Audit Commission wrongly attributes this achievement solely to Community Fire Safety.
No opinion on emergency response!
“Our ability to carry out rescues is directly linked to the speed of response and numbers of firefighters we send. Yet the Audit Commission says it has no opinion on that emergency response:
Paragraph 1, page 2: "It does not give an opinion on how well fire and rescue authorities respond to emergency incidents.”
“The public judge us by how quickly we respond, how many rescues we carry out and how we deal with other major emergencies. This report deals with none of those crucial issues which are central to assessing how the fire service is actually performing.”
The number of people rescued from serious home fires in England is up from 2,716 in 1994 to 3,868 in 2003, a rise of 42%. These are the last ten years for which figures are available. The number of serious fires in the home has actually decreased slightly over the same period from 66,600 to 63,600 (UK wide figures, not only England).
The figures do not include those escaping without the aid of the fire service or those rescued by neighbours or passers-by. Nor do they include the numbers not at immediate risk who are evacuated.
Numbers needing rescuing increasing
The figures are based on analysis of Parliamentary questions and historical data contained in the official UK fire statistics. Strategies aimed at preventing fires from happening are obviously important - but these statistics show that the number of people needing rescuing from fires in the home is actually increasing.
In 2003 a total of 3,868 people were rescued alive from fires in the home in England by the fire service. Of these: 2,441 had suffered injuries and 1,427 were rescued unharmed gives a total of 3,868 rescues. According to ODPM annual fire statistics, there were a further 345 fatal casualties in dwelling fires in England.
The total of 4,213 persons who needed to be rescued from fires (those rescued alive plus those who died) in the home is made up of those 3,868 who were successfully rescued alive PLUS the 345 who died. In this ‘at risk’ group in need of fire service rescue, the survival rate is 91.8%.
FBU condemns pay rises of up to 27% for London management fat cats
The Union has condemned proposals going to the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority tomorrow to give inflation-busting pay rises of up to 27% to top managers. At a time when inflation is running at 2.4% and firefighters have received a 3.4% pay rise, Fire Chief Ken Knight is recommending the Fire Authority award him a 17.5% increase in pay, bringing his salary to a whopping £175,000.
The pay rise being sought by Ken Knight is more than the annual pay of a London firefighter. He is also recommending pay increases of up to 27% for eighteen other senior managers at a full year cost of approximately £250,000 a year.
London Region FBU is asking Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott to investigate and challenge the move. Mr Prescott has in the recent past blocked fire service pay awards until they have been authorised by the Audit Commission.
The Fire Authority voted last year to close Manchester Square Fire Station in Marylebone, reduce crewing levels and sack cooks at fire stations in order to save cash. Mr. Knight, aged 59, is entitled to retire on a final salary pension of two thirds of his final pay.
Ken Knight heading for £379,000 retirement lump sum - tax free
By serving a further twelve months at the new rate, he would be eligible to retire with a tax free lump sum of approximately £379,000. Shortly before the previous Chief Fire Officer, Brian Robinson, retired in 2003, he also persuaded the Fire Authority to award himself an 18% increase, bringing his salary up to £130,000 and entitling him to retire with a lump sum of more than £300,000.
Commenting on the proposed increases, Mick Shaw, Fire Brigades Union Executive Council Member for London said: “These same local councillors closed a fire station last year and cut fire crews to save money. It’s scandalous they now think that it is ok to vote senior managers massive pay hikes which will boost their pension pay outs.
Double-standards
“London firefighters and most of the public would love to be able to submit reports to their employer recommending inflation-busting pay rises for themselves. It is no wonder that increasing numbers of voters have become cynical about the actions of elected politicians.
“John Prescott has blocked fire service pay rises in the past until they have been authorised by the Audit Commission. We are demanding to know what he intends to do about this one and whether he intends to refer it to the Audit Commission.
Solidarity with Notts members
Nott members are paying a minimum voluntary levy of £5 per week into a Hardship Fund to assist the 34 members refusing co-responding at Retford. Send your donation to:
BANK DETAILS: NAT WEST BANK PLC
ACCOUNT NAME: NOTTS HARDSHIP FUND
ACCOUNT NO: 68013868
SORT CODE: 55 – 61 - 17
ODPM comparable to “pantomine horse”
John Prescott’s civil servants and local government officials have described his department as unfocused, lacking leadership and comparable to a “pantomime horse”.
The scathing verdict on the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) is revealed in a leaked Mori opinion poll of government officials and stakeholders. It depicts a department that is poorly managed, “out-gunned” by other departments and suffering from “re- organisation fatigue”.
The report has emerged as Prescott comes under increasing pressure to start paying council tax on his grace and favour government apartment in Admiralty House, London. The Sunday Times revealed last month that Prescott was not required to pay council tax out of his own pocket on any of his three homes.
Blow to credibility
Mori’s leaked analysis is a blow to Prescott’s credibility and will give new ammunition to opponents who argue that, at 67, it is time he stepped down.
His officials fear his “rambling” empire, which was behind the abortive attempt to set up regional assemblies and is leading controversial plans to build 1.1m homes in southern England, will be dismantled as soon as he leaves office.
Prescott suffered the humiliation of having to listen to the demolition of his record at a meeting about a year ago attended by his departmental ministers and senior officials. Witnesses said the room fell into an embarrassed silence.
Mori’s confidential poll reveals that civil servants feel the ODPM lacks a “clearly articulated vision and leadership”. They said the department was “schizophrenic” about whether or not to devolve greater powers to local authorities.
Fire service officials scathing
Senior local government managers, fire service officials and public sector workers in regional organisations were even more scathing. The department was criticised for not “punching its weight” and was described as a “pantomime horse” and a “patchwork quilt”.
Even in Labour’s northern heartlands Prescott has provoked concerted opposition because of his programme of demolishing thousands of Victorian homes.
Some Labour insiders believe Blair misjudged Prescott’s abilities and gave him too much responsibility. One former ministerial adviser said: “He is much better as a politician than a minister and his main role is as a go- between for Blair and Brown. He could still be the person who pulls the plug on Blair.”
A department spokesman said: “We commissioned the survey shortly after the department was set up. Since that time our stakeholders and civil servants have a much clearer understanding of the department’s role and its performance.”
Losing touch
Caroline Spelman, shadow secretary for the department, said Prescott was in danger of losing touch with voters by increasing council tax but not paying it himself on his government apartment.
An ODPM spokesman refused to comment on whether Prescott would start paying the tax.
www.timesonline.co.uk
Don’t make war - save lives!
The Government has plans to spend some £25 billion renewing the Trident nuclear weapons system - indeed they may have already decided in secret. This at a time when Chancellor Gordon Brown is considering £8bn in spending cuts. These cuts will no doubt have a negative impact on essential public services, including the fire service, which is already facing a funding squeeze and cuts.
£25 billion is more than 16 times the annual budget for the fire service - a service dedicated to saving lives not taking them!
A replacement will also undermine the Non-Proliferation Treaty – at a time when the latest US doctrine foresees the use of nuclear weapons once again.
Lobby your MP
Officials and members are urged to write to their MPs to support CND’s early day motion - EDM 1197 Replacement for Trident Weapons - calling for the fullest possible public debate on a decision to replace Trident, including a debate and deciding vote in parliament. It takes less than 2 minutes. Go to the FBU website www.fbu.org.uk and follow the Lobby Your MP link. For more on CND’s campaign visit www.cnduk.org
Stop the slaughter of trade unionists - Stop UK military aid to Colombia
Being a trade unionist is becoming more dangerous with a total of 145 people worldwide killed due to their trade union activities in 2004, 16 more than the previous year, according to the ICFTU Annual Survey of Trade Union Rights Violations. And once again Colombia was the deadliest country for trade unionists, with 99 murders, and hundreds of death threats set against a background of systematic efforts by the government to undermine the trade union movement.
Encourage your MP to sign Justice for Colombia/TUC’s EDM number 355, which calls on the British Government to end their secretive military assistance project in Colombia - – assistance believed to be benefiting Colombian military units that violate human rights, including those that attack trade union members, community workers and public servants such as firefighters. Encourage your MP to sign. Visit www.fbu.org.uk and follow the ‘Lobby Your MP’ link. For more on the campaign visit: www.justiceforcolombia.org.
Lobbying facility on FBU website
Beyond the specific campaigns the Union is running, members can lobby their political respresentative on any issue they wish by following the ‘Lobby Your MP’ link from the FBU website homepage and clicking on either ‘Lobby Your MP’, ‘Lobby Your MSP’ or ‘Lobby your Welsh Assembly Member’.
Once you have entered your postcode, hit return you can then enter the text of your choice. There is a suggested introduction and sign off to the e-letter. The Dear… and Yours… headers and footers will be filled in automatically by the software.
Subscribe to the e-bulletin
Get the e-bulletin and other FBU campaign news by email. Go to www.fbu.org.uk, type in your email address on the bottom left hand side of the home page and hit the “Sign Up” button.
Last Modified: 7/04/08 10:50,
