A firefighter has criticised the "obscene" pay on offer to reserves who could be called on during a strike. South Wales Fire and Rescue Service is advertising for auxiliary reserve firefighters who would be paid up to £70 per hour.
Firefighters and control room staff across the UK are set to vote on strike action having rejected the offer of a 5% pay increase. And the South Wales service has posted an online advert showing that auxiliary reserves – who can perform a limited set of firefighting duties – could be paid far more per hour than a fully-trained firefighter. The advert says the reserves will be offered:
- Up to £13.59 per hour during initial training, "ad hoc training", or "additional duties"
- Up to £261.37 for attending a quarterly "re-familiarisation training day"
- Up to £261.37 as a quarterly retainer payment if training days are attended
- Up to £70 per hour for being employed during industrial action as an auxiliary reserve firefighter.
One serving firefighter in Cardiff told WalesOnline: "The pay being offered to untrained auxiliaries – who will not be able to enter a building on fire, only stand outside and squirt water – to attend a short course is more than we pay professional firefighters. And should they be used we feel £70 an hour is obscene and insulting."
Read next: Two shops forced to shut as raids discover huge stash of illegal tobacco and vapes
The reserve role is described as part-time and based in Llantrisant. Its "principal aim" would be to protect people and property "during possible industrial action" according to the advert.
The Fire Brigades Union (FBU) is balloting members on whether to strike after staff voted to reject a 5% offer which the union slammed as "derisory" and a "real-terms pay cut". Inflation was at 11.1% in the year to October.
"We earn about £14.50 an hour with no shift enhancements," said the firefighter, who asked not to be named. "However should we go on strike the service will pay amateurs dressed in our uniforms up to £70 an hour. As a comparison a development firefighter in their first two years is on £11.51 an hour to go out to life-threatening emergencies."
He added: "The chief fire officer had a legal obligation to provide fire cover even in industrial action, which we understand and appreciate. However we feel that recruiting auxiliaries, training them for two weeks, and putting them in the same uniforms we work for two years to wear is an insult and is done to mask our strike from the public. Other services have used different uniforms or hired outside bodies such as G4S.
"Essentially firefighters are about £4,000 down [per year] in real terms since austerity started in 2008... Over the last few years we have shown the public and our chief so much goodwill. We volunteered to assist in Covid vaccinations, in helping move the deceased, and in Wales we have taken on water rescue as a statutory responsibility because we felt it was right to do. We didn't ask for a penny more."
The Home Office says that setting firefighter pay is the responsibility of employers working through the National Joint Council. And the South Wales service told WalesOnline it "understands why" the FBU is balloting members.
A spokesman for the service said: "The 5% offer was seen as the most sustainable and affordable offer for fire and rescue services as there are approximately 48,500 uniformed employees across the UK. Each fire and rescue service has a statutory duty to protect the public and this includes having continuity arrangements in place in the event of strike action. During the last strikes in 2013 to 2015, and more recently during the Covid pandemic, auxiliary firefighters have been used to support essential services to communities.
"This role has included firefighting and driving ambulances. Employing auxiliary firefighters enables us to balance the right of FBU members to strike with the need to protect our communities where there is a risk to life in a sensitive way... Since 2013 we have employed 80 to 120 auxiliary firefighters who are trained to respond to a limited range of emergencies focused on actual risk to life. We recognise that we could never replicate the service that our firefighters and control staff provide on a normal day-to-day basis. Also we could not protect our communities in times of strike without the commitment of our auxiliary firefighters.
"We value all staff and hope that a negotiated settlement can be found to avert any strike action. We trust that our staff and the wider public understand our need to prepare for any eventuality. The service is well aware of the impact of the cost of living crisis on everyone and remains hopeful that the situation can be resolved without the need for strike action. However, should this happen, we will continue to prioritise the safety of our communities and dignity of all of our staff during what could be an extremely challenging time." You can read more of the latest stories on South Wales Fire and Rescue Service here.
READ NEXT:
Singer claims police got into his car in Cardiff and punched him as he 'feared for his life'
Mum, 18, living in mould-infested flat fears for life of daughter who keeps being hospitalised
'I had no idea my violent ex was a convicted domestic abuser'
Terror at Winterland as dad is 'lifted 25ft with no restraint'
