Firefighters to take further strike action

Calderdale firefighters will be on strike on Friday, December 13, and Saturday, December 14, both between 6pm and 10pm.

This will be the fifth period of strike action taken by the FBU this year and West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service are confident that contingency plans will once again prove effective.

Assistant Chief Officer Dave Walton said: “As we have said previously we are disappointed that the Fire Brigades Union has chosen to take strike action once again.

“However, our contingency plans have proved effective during recent strike periods and we are confident that this time around will be no different.

“These evenings will inevitably be busy as they fall within the run-up to the festive period when people will be out celebrating with friends and work colleagues.

“We urge the public to take extra care, especially on the roads, to ensure everyone remains safe during this period of reduced cover.

“We continue to encourage both the Minister and the Fire Brigades Union to seek a resolution to this dispute.”

The decision for strike action relates to an on-going trade dispute between the FBU and the Government over its public sector pension reform programme. In particular current proposals to introduce a new

Firefighters’ Pension Scheme from April 2015 to replace the two current pension schemes that most operational personnel are members of.

On Wednesday it was announced that FBU members have voted in favour of taking action short of a strike, which can run parallel to full strike action. However the details of this are as yet

unclear.

The first full strike was on September 25, between noon and 4pm, the second was on Friday November 1, between 6.30pm and 11pm, the third was on November 4, between 6am and 8am, and the fourth strike was on November 13 between 10am and 2pm.