The cover story of this edition of Firefighter will be familiar to many FBU members. In many areas, it is no longer guaranteed that there will be enough firefighters on a fire engine to safely tackle an incident.
As we report in this issue, firefighters attending incidents as part of a crew of four, or even three, are sometimes left in an impossible position, risking disciplinary action and their own safety if they try to do their jobs.
As we went to print, a series of wildfires in Scotland and Northern provided a stark reminder of what the future may look like. Extreme weather events will become more common as our climate changes, and so will the threat to public safety.
Through the new Ministerial Advisory Group, we are making progress on national standards in the fire service. The FBU will argue these should include crewing numbers and response times.
None of this will be possible without investment. This year, the government increased fire service funding by just 1.4% - another real terms funding cut. We must fight for something better.
Pay
Since 2010, firefighters have lost something like 12% of the value of their pay.
There are a host of wider issues. While we have made progress on RDS pay, retention is still a massive issue. The national baseline for maternity pay (26 weeks on full pay) is only half-way to the 52 weeks that women firefighters need. Control pay still does not have parity. Development and trainee pay is getting dangerously close to the minimum wage.
The FBU negotiates pay directly with fire service employers, not with central government. This is important. At meetings of the National Joint Council (NJC), we have made the case for a pay rise, and have been able to pursue discussion on pay progression and the role of firefighters. These will continue.
The future of the FBU’s strategy on pay will be debated at annual conference. Read page X [noticeboard] for more information.
Shift changes
In Mid and West Wales and Gloucestershire, FBU members are fighting management’s attempts to impose changes to shift patterns. These will make life harder for firefighters – especially those with caring responsibilities – with no benefit to the public. Members have the full support of the FBU nationally in their campaign. We report more on page X.
In parliament
The FBU’s Westminster parliamentary group is a network of MPs allied to the union. They intervene on our behalf on issues like pensions, funding, pay, and fire service policy.
The group met on 1 April, and Kim Johnson, MP for Liverpool Riverside, was elected as its new chair. Congratulations to Kim, who I look forward to working closely with in the years to come; and thank you to Zarah Sultana, who did great work in the role.
