🚨 NEW | On 8 October, firefighters from across the UK will come to Westminster for a national rally and lobby
14 years of austerity have brought the fire service to its knees. For the new government, it's TIME TO DELIVER:
🔥 Investment
🔥 Standards
🔥 Workers' rights
Be there
The FBU is aware that pro-Palestine protesters are holding further demonstrations in Leicester.
Previously, firefighters have been asked to assist the police in removing protestors.
The FBU advises all members not to be involved in law enforcement activities.
Firefighters and fire control staff know their worth. A 2% pay offer is an insult after 12 years of government-imposed reductions in real wages and in a cost of living crisis.
We'll now put this offer to members, recommending they reject it.
Firefighters line the Royal Mile in Edinburgh for the funeral of Brother Barry Martin.
Today we mourn the loss of a dedicated member of the community and a brave firefighter. We come together in his honour.
11,500 firefighters cut since 2010 + extreme weather conditions = a recipe for disaster. It's simple maths.
The government aren't listening. They need to fund our fire service. And pay our firefighters more.
No building should react to fire like this in the 21st century - we need a complete overhaul of UK fire safety.
Thank you for the amazing work of crews on the ground.
#BoltonFire
.
@UKLabour
was built by workers, for workers. We're appalled by Labour leadership's lack of support for striking workers & sacking shadow ministers who stand on picket lines
They need to remember who they represent & show solidarity for those fighting for a more equal society
Huge cuts were made to London Fire Brigade in the years before the Grenfell fire. Cuts which hampered efforts to tackle the fire.
The Mayor who oversaw those cuts?
Boris Johnson.
The Grenfell Tower Inquiry isn't taking evidence from him. It must.
Outraged that Government & our very own MP
@FelicityBuchan
voted against amendment to implement
#Grenfell
recommendations. Its no surprise as the Gov continue to fail the country - almost a year since the recomendations & so little has been done. 1000s still in dangerous homes.
🚨 NEW | We have written to Home Secretary Suella Braverman to ask for a meeting about our safety concerns on the Bibby Stockholm.
As the union representing the overwhelming majority of firefighters, we are driven by the need to prevent loss of life and protect public safety.
Nearly two weeks after firefighters told employers that they've rejected their offensive 2% pay offer, we've still not received a new & improved offer
Our EC has agreed that our work preparing for a ballot on national strike action will continue. Firefighters demand pay justice.
💥 This is huge 💥
The numbers speak for themselves.
🗳️ After more than a decade of falling pay, firefighters have voted by an overwhelming margin for strike action. 🗳️
We stand firm. ✊
Fire bosses keep calling wildfires "unprecedented" as they try to deflect attention from their and the government's underresourcing.
What a joke - you can't cut a fifth of the workforce and expect the service to work fine. We can all see what's happening.
NEW: The government is trying to restrict firefighters' and control staff's right to strike by requiring minimum levels of service.
The FBU and the entire trade union movement will fight this pernicious attack on workers by all means available to us.
It is utterly outrageous that 11,500 firefighters have been cut over the last decade: the government and fire and rescue services knew climate change was coming.
Last week is a consequence of their dreadful neglect.
“You’ve got firefighters going to foodbanks and firefighters who can’t afford their mortgages"
Firefighters urgently need the government and fire employers to get their act together and put forward a decent pay offer.
Our members can't wait.
In this heatwave, we've seen:
15 fire services declare major incidents
Firefighters & control staff recalled due to staff shortages
Firefighters injured & hospitalised
This wasn't unprecedented. This is the impact of cuts & a government that won't take climate change seriously.
Our members giving evidence to the Grenfell Inquiry this week have acted with honour, integrity and bravery. Not only did they show great courage in tackling the most extreme & unprecedented fire, they relived those events this week as part of the fight for justice
Solidarity with the brilliant
@RMTunion
rail workers as they strike today.
There is no rail industry without rail workers. There is no economy without workers. Every worker deserves decent pay.
NEW:
#EnoughlsEnough
is proud to announce our latest affiliation.
Welcome aboard
@fbunational
! The cuts to our fire service are a national disgrace – we’re behind you in the fight to save it 👊
Join our growing movement:
Firefighters risk their lives running into fires, yet find themselves running out of cash to pay their bills every month.
It shouldn't be this way. And workers have had enough. The tide is turning in the fight against the cost of living crisis.
📢After nine months of campaigning, our pay dispute is at an end. Firefighters will now receive a 7% backdated pay rise and another 5% this July.
🚒The strength and unity of FBU members won this result, and collective bargaining was crucial.
Our fight goes on ✊
Evidence today at the Grenfell Tower Inquiry was a damning indictment of privatisation, de-regulation and the pursuit of profit over public safety.
Here’s why:
We know whose side we're when we see far right mobs attacking refugees and politicians playing the mood music.
The FBU is proud to have coordinated this statement, which has now been signed by general secretaries from across the trade union movement.
We have laid a wreath to honour the 72 lives lost in the Grenfell Tower fire.
It was a tragedy that never should have happened.
We stand in solidarity with the community in their search for justice.
The Fire Brigades Union stands against the campaign of racist violence being waged by the far right.
Solidarity with all those facing islamophobia, violence and intimidation.
Our statement in full:
(1/4)
Twenty one years ago today 343 firefighters lost their lives in the 9/11 attacks - much-loved family members and friends who would never return home.
Today, we remember them and all the victims of these attacks.
Last week we told employers that unless we received an improved pay offer we would formally give notice of a strike ballot.
We have now done that. It's
#FairPayorFireStrike
.
Yesterday, we were presented with a new offer. It is for 7% backdated to July 2022, and another 5% from July 2023.
This offer is testament to the power of collective action, but we will also be honest and sober in our discussions.
Our statement:
Firefighters and control staff stand with ambulance workers striking today ✊
Every worker deserves to be paid fairly. Every worker in the emergency services deserves to be paid fairly.
#FairPayForEveryWorker
Hi
@MattHancock
, we're not entirely sure that a newspaper having to buy PPE from abroad - in what has been dubbed a 'crisis intervention' - is the success story you think it is. It's embarrassing and shameful, actually.
Three and a half years ago, a fire in Grenfell Tower took the lives of 72 people.
But today, there have been few consequences for the corporations and politicians who turned their home into a death trap.
We reaffirm our commitment on this day to fight for justice for Grenfell.
Solidarity with
@theRCN
nurses as they continue their fight today.
Their vital fight for better pay and a working NHS continues, and we stand with them ✊✊✊
Blocking a fire exit is incredibly dangerous - and it's illegal.
This has now been fixed, but serious questions remain about how the decision was made to tie up this route to safety.
There are no two ways about it: blocking, locking and tampering with fire exits kills people.
The Grenfell Inquiry spent weeks upon weeks questioning firefighters and control staff, who did absolutely everything they could to save lives in horrific conditions.
On Friday we found out that there will be just five days of politicians being questioned.
That's disgraceful.
Today is a hugely important day for
@theRCN
nurses.
For the first time in their history they've been forced to take nationwide strike action, on pay and patient safety.
Nurses are some of our most vital workers. Firefighters and control staff are with you in this fight ✊✊✊
Fire safety is a serious matter and this situation calls for a grown-up approach.
As firefighters it is our duty to sound the alarm about the Bibby Stockholm.
We await a response from the Home Secretary in regard to our serious fire safety concerns.
If this crisis is doing one thing, it’s vindicating what we knew all along: that the low-paid aren’t low skilled, that key workers aren't the rich who clean us out, but the ones who keep us clean and safe. When this crisis subsides, let’s remember who kept this country running.
Labour was founded by unions to serve working people, not the rich.
This walks and talks like cash for access and it has no place in the Labour Party. End of.
Exc: Labour under Keir Starmer is offering wealthy donors "invite-only strategy updates"
It comes as he seeks to woo those alienated by Corbyn
Per brochure those who "give at the highest level" go on a "journey" including a welcome party hosted by Angela Rayner at conference
London firefighter cuts mean we have persistently high levels of fire engines off the run because there aren't enough firefighters to crew them.
Every engine off the run means additional risk to the public and their safety.
As another heatwave approaches the fire and rescue service is still underfunded and underresourced.
Last month we saw real damage. We are set to see that again.
Last year, the government said ACM cladding should be removed from every single one of the 327 buildings wrapped in the deadly material by June 2020.
With one month to go, just 20 have been made safe.
Utterly shameful.
NEW: Freedom of Information requests reveal that Chief Fire Officers are on average on £148,000 - whilst many ordinary firefighters, on £32,244, are forced to foodbanks.
#VoteYes
#FairPayorFireStrike
Firefighters face a stark choice at this election; a transformative
@jeremycorbyn
-led government that will rebuild the fire and rescue service; or another five years of disastrous Tory cuts
#GE2019
#RealChange
RT
We are very pleased to announce that we have been successful at the court of appeal in our pensions case against the government.
More to follow.
#PensionJustice
🚨| Fresh from BBC News at Six.
We have serious concerns about fire safety on the Bibby Stockholm, and they aren't going away.
Everyone has the right to a decent home. Fires don't discriminate. Neither should fire safety regulations.
The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service has now confirmed that Firefighter Barry Martin has passed away following serious injuries sustained at a fire in the Jenners Building in Edinburgh on Monday 23rd January.
A statement from our General Secretary
@MattWrack
.
🚨BREAKING: The government has announced authoritarian ‘minimum service levels’ for the fire and rescue service.
This legislation seeks to ban firefighters, control staff and other workers from taking strike action.
The Fire Brigades Union will resist in every way possible.
As the government announces another anti-migrant policy, trade unions have come together to declare their solidarity with refugees.
We are proud to have helped to coordinate this statement.
#FreeSchoolMeals
On the left £30 of food. On the right what private company Chartwells have supplied having been awarded a government contract to supply for £30 free school meals.
Utterly shameful profiteering off some of the country's most disadvantaged kids!
We are disappointed that FBU President, Ian Murray, has not been elected Chair of Labour’s national executive committee.
The decision will be seen as factional and a slap in the face to Labour’s trade union affiliates. (1/3)
Firefighters using foodbanks is a disgusting situation for our society to be in. Enough is enough.
@MattWrack
gave evidence to Parliament today
#VoteToReject
Some fire services are currently trying to send firefighters into fires without their breathing apparatus turned on.
We cannot allow an underresourced fire and rescue service to risk lives like this.
As a union we will continue to fight against this disastrous policy.
🚨 BREAKING | The FBU has launched a legal case on the Bibby Stockolm, after sounding the alarm for weeks.
This is an industrial issue for us, and it is disgraceful that the government will not even meet with us to discuss our concerns
We will always stand up for public safety
40 years ago, a fire at a house party in New Cross killed thirteen young black people
The aftermath shone a light on the endemic racism in the UK government, media and institutions
While we cannot do so today, FBU members staged a guard of honour on the fire's 30th anniversary
It’s a shame the
@houseofcommons
deleted this tweet. We think it’s an accurate reflection of how little this government cares about the threat of flooding, or the hardworking firefighters and other emergency service workers who respond bravely to it.
ICYMI, yesterday the Tories voted against:
❌ saying thank you to emergency services for their work during the floods;
❌ holding an independent review into preparing for and responding to flooding
And they have the audacity to call themselves the “people’s government”
"The new pay offer for firefighters still isn’t enough. We can’t go on like this."
@MattWrack
tells
@thetimes
why we're calling for firefighters to reject fire service employers' revised pay offer and why the fight for fair pay continues
Getting those
#FairPayOrFireStrike
ballots in nice and early 👏
#VoteYes
Our posties are doing a stellar job delivering our ballots, all while fighting for their own pay and conditions. We're all in this together so support
@CWUnews
on the picket lines tomorrow ✊
This is grotesque. Building company
@BerkeleyGroupUK
have told the government to relax the ban on the type of cladding that killed 72 people at Grenfell, calling it 'low risk'
This is what protecting profits over people looks like - and it is shameful
WOW: FBU members have SMASHED the consultative ballot on the disgraceful 5% pay offer ✊✊✊
A massive 79% have voted to reject it, on a 78% turnout.
Watch this space for further updates.
🚨BREAKING: Labour is set to repeal both the Minimum Service Levels and the 2016 Trade Union Act.
The Tories brought these laws in to ban workers from defending jobs, pay and conditions.
This legislation wouldn't be out of place under a dictatorship - good riddance.
This morning, the Grenfell Tower Inquiry was told that Celotex, manufacturers of the building's flammable insulation, deliberately misled buyers and regulators into thinking their highly flammable insulation was safe for high-rise buildings.
Stomach-churning.
🏥 Nursing staff across England will strike again from 8pm tonight until 11:59pm on Monday.
✊ Solidarity with all striking NHS staff.
👉 Find your nearest picket lines to visit here
Disrespected. Hurt. Disappointed. Taken for granted.
This is how the govt. has made firefighters and fire control staff feel after years of attacks on our pay and profession. But if we stand and fight together, we can win change.
Our moment is now.
#VoteYes
#FairPayOrFireStrike
Today's
@HMICFRS
report is a blatant political attack on firefighters and their union
Bosses and government want to water down Covid-19 safety in our service, putting us all at risk
And they don't want our union getting in the way
#FirefightersStitchedUp
If money can be found to pay people these kinds of sums to break strikes, it can be found for a decent pay deal.
This is an insult to firefighters who are struggling after more than a decade of falling pay. It is also a terrible use of public money.
🚨 | The barges being brought in to house asylum seekers are a potential deathtrap. This policy is cruel and wreckless.
Everyone has the right to live in safe housing, no matter where they are from. As the professional voice of firefighters, we will not be silent on this.
Two years after
#Grenfell
, 338 high rise buildings still have the same inflammable cladding.
Thanks to
@jeremycorbyn
for reminding the government of their promise to keep residents safe.
#GrenfellNeverAgain
At PMQs Boris Johnson was asked about the shameful 2% pay offer for firefighters.
His answer? Increasing workers' pay could increase inflation.
Workers shouldn't have to the pay the price for this government's mess.
Absolute solidarity with CWU BT and Openreach members taking strike action today.
They deserve to paid properly for their work.
Particular solidarity goes from the FBU to BT 999 call operators, who are a vital part of the work FBU members do.
FBU members are absolutely clear. 2% against skyrocketing inflation is not a pay "offer" - it's an insult.
We are now preparing to ballot for strike action.
Watch our video update on this here:
WOW. The tide is turning and the wave of workers are rising ✊
Our key workers deserve a hell of a lot more than claps on the back. We stand with you
@theRCN
BREAKING:
@CornwallFRS
are trying to scrap their entire fire control operation.
This is beyond belief.
We are fighting this disgraceful move which endangers our members' jobs and public safety.
The second phase of the Grenfell Inquiry, exposing corporate complicity in the disaster, has been almost entirely ignored by many national news outlets
Today's media circus over Downing Street infighting is a nauseating but shamefully unsurprising reflection of their priorities
Years of falling wages. Years of real-terms pay cuts. All while they've worked to keep the public safe.
Together we can end over a decade of disrespect for our frontline firefighters and fire control staff.
#VoteYes
for change.
#VoteYes
for strike action.
#FairPayOrFireStrike
All across the UK this morning, FBU members paid their respects to Firefighter Barry Martin, who died on January 27 following injuries sustained at a large fire in Edinburgh.
His bravery and sacrifice will never be forgotten, and we are proud that he was a member of our union.
🚨The government has announced that the Minimum Service Levels Act will be REPEALED.
Overturning this attack on the right to strike is a victory for all workers, fought and won by trade unions.
Today must mark the beginning of the end of decades of attacks on workers' rights.
Firefighters and control staff stand with
@RMTunion
rail workers in their fight on pay, jobs and conditions, as their strikes continue today.
This is a battle between ordinary rail workers and huge profitmaking rail firms.
We know whose side we're on.