FBU to ballot for strike action

Thursday, 10 June 2004 12:00 AM

The Fire Brigades Union (FBU) has announced it will be balloting for strike action.

Its executive council said it will be recommending strike action to its members at next week's conference.

It claims that local authorities have failed to honour the pay deal agreed to settle last summer's strike.

General secretary Andy Gilchrist said: "We are angry and exasperated at councillors always moving the goalposts during these pay talks. Every time agreement is reached they put up another obstacle.

"The test for the payment of 3.5 per cent was verification by the Audit Commission that the pay agreement had been honoured and change was taking place. This test has been passed, the agreement has been honoured by us and it is time to pay up.

"Councillors have raised a series of obstacles that were nothing to do with the agreement reached last year. Every time we have tried to resolve these issues they simply raise another obstacle.

"It is clear they have no genuine intention of reaching an agreement. They have done little more than lie, waste our time and insult people providing a first rate public service.

"They either want to honour the agreement and press on with modernisation or they do not. They have dithered and delayed for months and our patience has simply run out."

The latest ballot for action comes after recent unofficial strike action up and down the country.

The unofficial action was sparked by the suspension of 19 fire fighters in Salford, whom allegedly refused to use the new anti-terror equipment as they had not received promised pay rises.

The FBU claim that fire fighters were also being asked to sign new, un-negotiated contracts.

Local authority representatives and the FBU have been in talks designed to resolve the outstanding issues and it had been believed that a deal was on the cards.

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