Firefighters take fresh strike action over pensions row
Members of the Fire Brigades Union will today take strike action between midday and 5pm.
In Shropshire it’s predominantly wholetime fire stations, situated in Shrewsbury and Telford that will be impacted by the strike.
Part time, or on-call, staffed fire stations, which are largely based in the more rural areas of Shropshire, are less likely to be affected.
Further strike action is scheduled for tomorrow between 2pm and 2am and Sunday from 10am until 3pm.
In addition to strikes in England and Wales, there will be a ban on voluntary overtime across England and Wales from 3pm on Sunday 4 May until noon on Friday 9 May, and in Scotland there will be a ban on voluntary overtime between noon on Friday 2 May and noon on Friday 9 May.
The dispute regarding pensions has been a prevalent issue over the past three years, as due to the tough physical nature of the job, firefighters often have to retire significantly earlier than those in other positions.
Lengthy negotiations have been taking place between the FBU and the Department for Communities and Local Government for several years, with extensive examinations of technical, financial and legal issues being the focus over recent months.
The government has proposed giving firefighters their third annual increase in pensions, taking them to 14.2 per cent. However, the dispute has still not been resolved and at a meeting last week, the executive council of the FBU voted unanimously in favour of strike action.
Matt Wrack, general secretary of the FBU, expressed frustration over the government's failure to resolve the dispute, saying in a statement: "After three years of negotiations and an intense four months presenting an indisputable, evidence-based case for the need to ensure a pensions scheme that takes into account the unique occupation of firefighting, the government is still burying its head in the sand."
The FBU has also met with the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service in recent weeks to outline its concerns over a lack of progress on the matter.
Previous industrial action over this issue took place in January 2014, after 78 per cent of fire service employees with the FBU voted to go on strike.
