break your agreement?
After the last strike there was an agree. ment between the employers and the union based on an agreed formula to take firemen out of the pay bargaining arena. Over the last two years this formula has resulted in approximately 20 per cent pay rises.
This year it was worked out at 18.83 per cent. The employers have baulked at this and now the government have weapon to use to renege on the deal.
The government has come out with the 6 per cent rate support grant which is to cover from April next year till April 1982. The local authorities have already creases this year between 15 and 20 per cent. We know this from friendly local authorities, predominantly Labour, up and down county.
Changes So, the Fire Brigades Union's position is that we have a pay formula to get us out of the pay arena every year, and the employers are reneging on it.
The employers said we'd have to accept less than 18.83 percent. conditions including 3,500-4,000 redundanThey system which operates in the rural areas.
systchn called System', where people have other jobs, and when requited they down tools and go to put out fires on a part-time basis. lacks the professionalism required in a large city like London.
The union's position is that the executive council has been recommending industrial action ever since une 1 ones starica lo suboest a single figure pay increase for the public sector, some three months ago. The recommendation from the strikes on a one-shift basis, probably one per week, each shift in rotation taking a day off. unnotic v. they could pull a national all-out strike.
given them a budgeted for inUnion Jim Allied to that were also want changes in the shift the 'Retained This system deal to executive is for lightning strike.
the executive do not think DURING the last Fire Brigades strike, the station was among the most militant in the Socialist Challenge talked to Fitzpatrick, the union secretary present dispute.
The whole future of the service is at stake — it's not just a case of the pay rise, because also in the background we have the Government Green Paper on the Fire Service which contains many of the strings attached to this Lightning strike action could be escalated national strike employers force a lock-out by refusing to allow us to return to work after the one-shift We will obviously be looking to the rest of the public sector and we statements of the TUC general council, from Len Murray and the public services commitBattersea the 1977-78 strike government.
action if the encourage the of discontent'. welcome the this time they mustthen The General Council into its the FBU, by 20 votes to 17. Out fireleaders of ther labour the movement, the unions, cied together • to break ibe continue alone.
defeated work on against January 1978 policy.
The final settlement was get the FBU back to work. Jim Fitzpatrick, during tee last Wednesday, that strike support will be forthcoming should the FBU be forced to take action themselves. This was neglected last time because we were fighting a Labour This time I believe that the 6 per cent will whole public SCCLO together, and that the officials will be pushed into leading this action. The FBU can bẹ th catalyst which can bring about another 'winter We realise that we've got to fight, because we've got no alternative. Have you established links with other 'Wanted for arson and murder - pay Merlyn Rees, at Union Secretary, in the last Labour government unless general up the agreement made by the Labour government and Tory Tory front bench at the time happened to age wite million The were before their time 1 year later w cut winter policy - accessor to the 10 when the five per ihe public sector unions anc government coll tasks But the leade aBu to fight alone. They all action with the firefighters miller opposed pay We have to make sure that the same doesn't hap militant pen this time.
for instance?
but. obviously feeling among the rank and file?
port, Photo: JOHN STURROCK (Report) on.
Solidarity their necks. bined: public would happen. port of us CLU proaching each other again.
Until the conference our hands are tied, we should be approaching trades councils, joint shop stewards committees etc, and posing the question: what is the The last time the FBU went on strike we looked to the rest of the labour movement and we got massive moral and financial supbut very little solidarity action. Given that situation, the members returned to the isolation of the fire stations and did not maintain those links with trades councils and so Three years later firefighters are again looking to the trade union movement to save I think they will learn that things won't be that easy, but the movement is magnanimous. The Tory government have been getting away with murder for the last 18 months. There may well be a response against the 6 per cent. Whether a general strike stituation or a com• sector strike will happen crystal ball gazing, but one would hope it What do you expect of the rest of the labour movement? What should we do now that we didn't do last time?
I think the calls have to be made again I think the difference is that where last time the TUC campaigned to get us back to work, this time the general secretaries of the public sector unions, the general council and Len Murray himself have all made statements in supGiven that situation I think it will be much easier to get solidarity action off the ground in local areas, and if there is no lead from above, then we, the local FBU reps, should be apother sectors and saying: /You should be supporting us and pushing to ge your union to come out with us! We should be building the links just now, getting to know
----- pull-quotes -----
country. local about the
stn tie rank renal problems even in