Page 1 of Firefighters reject pay offer 4.5 times inflation. Discuss...

And so the strike starts tomorrow. Is it me or have there been rather a lot of strikes lately (especially affecting those like me who commute to London a lot). Oh yes, I remember, we have a Labour Government don`t we. Hmm.

everyone has a right to strike for better conditions... and i`m only too happy to support them in their struggle....

Its about time we stopped thinking of ourselves and learned to be a little less selfish...

Difficult one this - on the one hand, it seems pretty incredible that the public services we really depend on for our physical safety (fire, police, ambulance etc.) could strike and put us all at risk.

On the other hand, those people who put themselves in danger on our behalf in the aforementioned public services should definitely be appropriately rewarded. It does seem like they have a very strong argument - how many years was it without a pay increase?!?

I suppose the third (mutant?) hand is where to take the money from...

"Oh yes, I remember, we have a Labour Government don`t we. Hmm"
I think that pretty unfair to blame the Government now - effectively for a dispute that has been unresolved and bubbling away for years now. While I don`t have the figures, it just seems so easy to say "yeah Labour government, typical...". Don`t know how it compares from under Tory rule but quite a few people have been surprised that Unions etc. have not received as much backing from Labour as they did in the past.

Ste

Mark it's debateable that you can blame the government for the strike, as if the Tories or Lib Dems were in power, they would still be on "roughly" the same wage wouldn't they? And I wouldn't see either of the other parties giving in to their demands so easily, so in theory they would strike.... but that's besides the point!..

I think there are many jobs which are deserving of a higher wage (certainly the emergency services), and many that are well over paid (sportsmen / women for example).

I think they should be paid more, but asking for something that is so much higher than inflation is always going to be tricky. By that, I mean if they get their own way by striking then anyone who thinks they should have a pay rise will try the same tactic, and the country would end up in chaos by constantly holding the government to ransom.

It's a pity they've got to strike as it's definitely going to put lives at risk, which is where they may lose support from the public.

This item was edited on Tuesday, 12th November 2002, 15:36

Heh - I wasnt blaming the Govt for this particular strike - merely making a sweeping generalisation that the number of strikes that I seem to be disrupted by has increased over the last three years.

It`s a shame it has got to this, as in my mind the fact that this all started with a totally unrealistic initial demand that they surely could not expect to get (bearing in mind all the other public sector workers), and then Gilchrist always totally refusing to relent on that magic figure, must have been counterproductive. ho hum.

This item was edited on Tuesday, 12th November 2002, 15:43

If I`m not mistaken it wasn`t "a totally unrealistic initial demand" - it was the recommended figure given from an `independant`.. study into the job.

Ste

Someone mentioned sports people as being overpaid. This is totally irrelevant as their employees can pay them what they like (can afford) it doesn`t matter (they are also entertainers with a talent i.e. there`s less skill in being a fire fighter). Whilst the government has to pay for firefighters and they certainly can`t pay what they like. If you are gonna make comparisons it would probably be best to draw them with Police, NHS etc...

>>>it seems pretty incredible that the public services we really depend on
>>>for our physical safety (fire, police, ambulance etc.) could strike and
>>>put us all at risk."

The police cannot strike. They also deserve more money then Fireman, in my opinion, as they sleep less and face a much more dangerous threat EVERY day and it`s getting worse for them year by year! There was a time (long before I was born!) when police didn`t need kevlar armour and could walk round neighbourhoods on their own. Now body armour is a must and there facing more knives and guns on the street! Fires have pretty much stayed the same over time :-) In fact there has not been a death or serious injury in a office block for over 40 years thanks to modern day sprinkler systems.

>>>If I`m not mistaken it wasn`t "a totally unrealistic initial demand" - it
>>>was the recommended figure given from an `independant`.. study into
>>>the job.

>>>Ste

If I`m not mistaken this pay increase which has been offered is also from an "independant" study...

I think the "splash and dash" men and women should take this pay rise.

[EDIT] - "The independent review had recommended the 11% pay rise over two years, linked to changes in working practices. The union is demanding 40%." Taken from the BBCs web site.

This item was edited on Tuesday, 12th November 2002, 18:27

Sorry, but the fire service, along with all emergency services, SHOULDN`T be allowed to strike. By doing so many lives will be put at risk.

Would you still agree with them if your family were to die in a house fire that could have been extinguished if they were not on strike?