Firefighters are set to vote on whether to take industrial action after members rejected a recent pay offer. Members of the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) will ballot on whether to strike next month.
Firefighters in the union recently rejected an offer that would have seen pay increased by 5%. In the vote on whether to accept the offer, 79% voted against the offer. A total of 78% of members took part in the ballot.
Now the union has said that firefighters will now vote again on whether to strike. Members will be able to vote between Monday, December 5, and Monday, January 23.
The FBU's general secretary, Matt Wrack, said some of its members had been forced to use foodbanks because their pay was not high enough.
He said: “FBU members have spoken. This result of the consultative ballot, on a two-week turnaround, shows that there is remarkable strength of feeling amongst firefighters and control staff on this derisory pay offer. The ball is in the employers’ and government’s court. There is still an opportunity to resolve this dispute and we will be writing to Fire Ministers and government departments across the UK requesting urgent meetings.
“We have firefighters using foodbanks. Our members worked through the pandemic to help protect their communities, taking on extra duties to do so. A further real-terms pay cuts is an absolutely disgusting way to thank them. Whilst strike action is always a last resort, our members simply can’t go on like this.”
