Fire employers are being urged by the FBU to guarantee that they will not implement the Westminster government’s latest anti-union laws.
The Minimum Service Levels Act became law in July 2023. Regulations covering the fire and rescue service in England were passed by the House of Lords in March this year.
The new legislation means that workers in fire and rescue, health, education, border security, nuclear decommissioning and rail could be forced to attend work even if they have voted democratically to strike.
In England, 73% of fire engines will be expected to be on the run on a strike day, with control rooms expected to operate as normal. Any employee not obeying a “work notice” to come to work could be dismissed.
But, crucially, it will be up to individual employers to decide whether to issue a work notice. Scottish first minister Humza Yousaf declared in April 2023 that the Scottish government would “never issue or enforce a single work notice”.
In March this year the Wales minister for social partnership Hannah Blythyn wrote to Westminster home secretary James Cleverly to declare that the Welsh government would “not be contributing to a fundamentally flawed, damaging and counterproductive” piece of legislation. As a result, the Act currently only applies to the fire service in England.
......the legislation was “an assault on the basic rights and freedoms” of firefighters, and that “any attempt to implement the new law will irreparably damage industrial relations”.
FBU general secretary Matt Wrack wrote to all fire service employers in England on 12 March, urging them to publicly commit to not issuing work notices against named individuals.
In the letter, Wrack argued the legislation was “an assault on the basic rights and freedoms” of firefighters, and that “any attempt to implement the new law will irreparably damage industrial relations”.
He also said that trying to implement work notices could “create serious hazards to public safety, with employers attempting to keep 73% of appliances on the run without a minimum level of staff”.
The letter was sent to dozens of fire authority chairs, police, fire and crime commissioners (PFCCs) and mayors. The overwhelming majority have yet to respond.
Commenting on the letter, Wrack said: “The FBU calls on all employers to make it clear that they will refuse to issue work notices, rendering the new laws inoperable in their local fire and rescue service.
“They should agree not to dismiss or take any disciplinary action against any employee for taking part in strike action.”
The FBU will launch the next phase of its campaign on the anti-union laws in the coming weeks, with members asked to lobby fire service employers directly.
Labour has promised to repeal the law within 100 days of winning an election.
