Fire Brigades Union recommends members accept new pay deal

The union called off strike action after receiving an improved wage offer

Author: Jonny FreemanPublished 11th Feb 2023

The Fire Brigades Union is recommending its members accept an improved pay offer, after postponing strike action to consider the deal.

Firefighters will now vote on whether to support the 7% rise - backdated to last July - and for another 5% increase from this July.

The union says it's a "significant shift" from a previous offer of just 2%.

In an email to FBU members this afternoon, FBU General Secretary Matt Wrack wrote:

“We should all be proud of the campaign we have run to get this far. We have now moved our employers from 2% in June last year, to 5% in November, and now to 7% plus 5%.

“This achievement was only possible because of our overwhelming mandate for strike action. It is clear evidence of the value of collective bargaining and negotiation as opposed to so-called “independent” pay review bodies.”

However, he stressed that the union leadership would not “sugar-coat” the offer: “Given the current rate of inflation, 7% is another real terms pay cut for the current pay round (which runs from July 2022 to July 2023). For the following year (July 2023 to July 2024), when inflation is forecast to be lower, 5% may amount to a slight increase in real terms pay.

“The Executive Council has weighed up the positives and negatives and decided that, on balance, we recommend that members vote to accept this offer. It was honest and sober in its assessment, but it was also unanimous.

“This is your union, and it is now for you to decide whether this offer represents a good enough improvement for us to resolve this dispute.”

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