Firefighter strike 'inevitable' over pay deadlock

Firefighters staged a protest at outside the Scottish Parliament in October

A strike by firefighters across Scotland is "inevitable" unless an improved pay offer is put on the table, a senior union official has warned.

Since the summer members of the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) have rejected two deals worth 2% and 5%.

With a strike ballot set to close next month, the union said action could take place as early as mid-February.

The Scottish government has said pay for firefighters is negotiated through UK-wide bargaining arrangements.

Scottish FBU secretary John McKenzie told BBC Radio's Good Morning Scotland programme his members should be offered a deal in line with inflation, which is currently 10.7%.

He said the most recent proposal was "overwhelmingly rejected" by 80% of members in the autumn.

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Mr McKenzie added: "If employers can't find the position to improve that offer then, inevitably, I think we are looking at a positive vote for strike action and then, ultimately, that is what we will be left with at the end of next month."

Although the Scottish government is not part of the negotiations, the union official said it had delivered a £10m uplift for Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) funding for 2023/24.

But Mr McKenzie said: "The reality of that is that is 3% increase on the previous budget allocation but we are now looking at inflation running at almost 11%.

"That doesn't come close to covering the costs that the service is going to require and pay is obviously an element of that."

'Hard truths'

In October hundreds of firefighters gathered outside the Scottish Parliament to call for increased pay and staffing.

But the FBU said its members were no further forward and it opened a ballot for strike action on 5 December which will run until 30 January.

Asked if the pay rise should be in line with inflation, Mr McKenzie told the programme: "I think what is important is that funding for public services, and the fire service obviously falls within that, has to keep pace with inflation and this is just one of the hard truths of where we are just now."

Mr McKenzie added a strike would only be the third in the history of the union.

The first ever national strike undertaken by firefighters lasted nine weeks from November 1977 to January 1978.

There was also industrial action in 2002/03 when the Army was drafted in to provide cover.

Pay for a trained firefighter is around £32,000 per year in the UK.

A Scottish government spokesperson said: "The Scottish government is not part of negotiations on firefighter pay, this is rightly a matter for SFRS as the employer.

"Firefighter pay is negotiated through UK-wide collective bargaining. We encourage all sides to reach a sustainable and fair settlement on firefighter pay."

The SFRS said firefighters' pay was set and negotiated through the National Joint Council, a negotiating body made up of representatives of trade unions and employers.