A few days before Firefighter went to print, I attended a historic meeting. For the first time in more than 20 years, the FBU has been invited to advise ministers directly on fire service policy. For years, we have warned of a postcode lottery on fire cover, caused by fragmentation and underfunding.
And, because of the FBU’s campaigning, Labour agreed in its election manifesto to re-introduce national standards in the fire service. There will also be a ministerial advisory group on fire service reform. It met for the first time in early December, and includes the FBU as the representative voice of firefighters and fire control staff.
We will argue that this committee should be statutory, and that national standards should be established on training, equipment, response times, crewing levels, equalities, and health and safety.
HEALTH AND SAFETY
This edition of the magazine is themed around a topic which we will be looking to raise regularly with ministers, as well as with employers: health and safety.
The FBU’s DECON campaign has changed the way that our sector talks about fire contaminants. You’ll find our posters in stations across the UK, and we have made serious inroads into the debate around cancer and other occupational diseases.
Despite this work, the UK remains decades behind other countries in recognising the health impacts of firefighting. It is a disgrace that it has been left to firefighters themselves to fund this work.
In an extended feature (see pages 8 to 13) I set out what we are demanding: prevention, health monitoring, and 9/11 Illnesses linked to the 9/11 World Trade Center terrorist attack in 2011 have now killed more members of the New York City fire department than died on 9/11 itself. Some 343 NY firefighters were killed on the day the Twin Towers fell. Since then, more than 360 have died of incident-related illnesses. proper recognition and compensation for firefighters who fall ill. We also bring you news of a new initiative on mental health. Next year, the FBU will begin in earnest to conduct research into the mental health crisis in the fire service. We need a minimum of 10,000 current or retired firefighters to take part in the survey – please be one of them.
EQUALITIES
Health and safety overlaps significantly with equalities, with another feature focussing on the FBU’s upcoming disabled and neurodivergent members’ forum.
RED PLAQUES
And, finally, Firefighter takes a look at this year’s Red Plaques, commemorating firefighters who have tragically died in the line of duty.
PAY
I have now written to fire service employers, requesting immediate talks on pay. We are determined to ensure that the new Labour government begins to undo the damage of austerity, and this must include a substantial aboveinflation pay increase. We must be prepared to fight for a pay rise – and, once again, it will be down to firefighters on the ground to lead that campaign. Read more on page 4.
