06-26-2014, 05:05 PM
LONDON REGION FBU 26 JUNE 2014
Fire Brigades Union (London Region), John Horner Mews, Frome Street, London N1 8PB. Tel: 020-7359 3638
P ATIENCE AND REASONABLENESS
haven’t worked. After three years of
negotiations, the government remains
intent on smashing up firefighters’
pensions.
The fire minister, Brandon Lewis, wants to force
every firefighter to serve on the frontline until 60 in
the future.
He wants every firefighter to pay several hundred
pounds more annually in pension contributions.
He wants thousands of firefighters to work
longer—up to 10 years in some cases—than they
were originally told.
He wants firefighters to forfeit huge chunks of
their pension—or be sacked—if they are unable to
maintain fitness standards.
Promises made to firefighters when they joined
the service have been broken with impunity.
These are the issues that lie at the heart of our
dispute and on which we have campaigned since
2011.
But the simple truth is that the government has
not shifted significantly on any of them. Not
because we’ve been too militant. But because
we’ve been too nice.
We should be under no illusions about the effort
involved in changing a government’s position
during an industrial dispute. Of course it will take a
serious fight. But London FBU members are up for
that fight. They realise that the alternative—to roll
over and give the government everything it
wants—is not an option.
It would seem that FBU members throughout the
rest of the country are up for the fight, too. That’s
why we won an overwhelming 78% ‘yes’ vote in
the strike ballot last August.
But since that result was announced, the strategy
of the union’s executive council (EC) has been
marked by excessive caution, by hesitancy and by
a lack of confidence in members.
Too often things have been allowed to drift. The
intervals between strike periods have been far too
long. Escalation should have happened much
earlier.
In the last 10 months, the EC has called less
than four days of strike action.
That is simply not good enough.
Momentum is a key factor in any industrial
dispute. Procrastination can undermine it. Inertia
causes confusion and frustration among members.
London members aren’t the only ones
demanding an escalation of strike action.
Members in the north-west region (covering
Merseyside, Greater Manchester, Lancashire,
Cumbria, Cheshire and Isle of Man) support an
escalation, too.
And Essex FBU members have voted in favour
of calling strikes for between eight and 16 days at
a time.
Brandon Lewis isn’t listening...
IT’S TIME TO
ESCALATE
Since 2011, while the FBU leadership has been
practising patience and reasonableness, Brandon
Lewis has been plundering our pensions.
While the EC was being patient and reasonable,
Lewis forced through a change in the normal
pension age to 60.
While the EC was being patient and reasonable,
Lewis hiked up our pension contributions on three
separate occasions.
While the EC was being patient and reasonable,
Lewis began the process of imposing the
contentious 2015 pension scheme.
While the EC was practising appeasement, the
government was waging war.
Over the last three years, members have seen a
stream of circulars from the national union telling
them that a serious fight is imminent.
They have heard, at meetings, senior union
officials—most notably general secretary Matt
Wrack, president Alan McLean and pensions officer
Sean Starbuck—tub-thump about how the gloves
will soon be coming off.
But every time the gloves come off, they are put
back on very quickly.
Such tactics run the danger of making the union
look weak and indecisive.
The recent decision to call a 24-hour strike was
welcome—but alone it isn’t nearly enough.
Of course strike tactics must be measured and
properly thought through. But everyone can see
that short, irregular strikes will not win this dispute.
Short strikes can work—but only if they are called
frequently. Otherwise, strikes must be longer.
Despite Brandon Lewis’s claims that it is
‘business as usual’ during strikes, contingency
plans have been totally exposed.
The scabs are failing. Lives have been lost, and
homes and workplaces have been destroyed.
No-one welcomes this, least of all proud and
compassionate firefighters, but it proves that the
government would be reckless to allow the dispute
to rumble on indefinitely.
There is more pressure on David Cameron and
Brandon Lewis than there is on FBU members.
Yesterday, in the House of Commons, Cameron
came under pressure to settle the dispute.
And speaking recently on national radio, Amanda
Platell, a former chief spin doctor for the Tories,
argued that the government should be looking to
cut a deal with firefighters before the general
election campaign begins.
CREDIT WHERE it is due, the EC has done
much right in this dispute. Our campaign
has been slick and professional; union
officials have spoken well in the media; and our
evidence-based arguments have trounced the
government’s case.
But powerful technical arguments and effective
presentation are not enough. They must be backed
up with a hard-hitting industrial campaign.
And that means more potent strikes.
Equally, the EC has made mistakes, and
members are entitled to debate those mistakes.
Alongside the excessive caution in setting strike
dates, there has been at least one other major
misjudgement.
That was the decision—which looks more illjudged
with each passing day—to allow the
Scottish region to cut free of taking strike action
following an improved (but still unsatisfactory) offer
from the Scottish government.
This was a serious tactical error and one that had
the potential to undermine our national campaign.
The EC must be bold enough to recognise their
mistake and show that they have learned the
lessons of it.
THE EXECUTIVE council meets again on 1
July. London’s EC member Ian Leahair will
be arguing strongly for an escalation of strike
action.
In the absence of an improved offer from Brandon
Lewis, it is surely inconceivable that the EC will not
agree.
No doubt Mr Lewis will offer to meet the FBU on
the condition that no strike action is called. But it
would be naïve in the extreme for the EC to fall for
this trick.
London FBU members will not be bought off with
promises of more meetings. We learned that lesson
in 2002-03 during the national pay strikes.
Only a significantly improved offer (by which we
do not mean the recent so-called ‘costed
proposals’) should be enough to persuade the EC
not to escalate our strikes.
Hundreds of thousands of local government
workers and teachers will be taking co-ordinated
strike action on 10 July. London FBU believes
firefighters should be on strike alongside them.
Some among the leadership of our union—
including the general secretary, assistant general
secretary, national officers and EC members—owe
their positions to the opposition they displayed to
the inadequate agreement that settled the 2002-03
pay dispute and the role they played in the
campaign for a more democratic and fighting union
that followed in its wake.
These officials must remember where they came
from and why they were elected.
London FBU members are furious at the attempts
by government to destroy their futures. They are
crying out for a fightback.
It’s time for the union’s leadership to start leading
that fight.
It’s time to escalate
http://www.london.fbu.org.uk/wp-content/...06/107.pdf
Fire Brigades Union (London Region), John Horner Mews, Frome Street, London N1 8PB. Tel: 020-7359 3638
P ATIENCE AND REASONABLENESS
haven’t worked. After three years of
negotiations, the government remains
intent on smashing up firefighters’
pensions.
The fire minister, Brandon Lewis, wants to force
every firefighter to serve on the frontline until 60 in
the future.
He wants every firefighter to pay several hundred
pounds more annually in pension contributions.
He wants thousands of firefighters to work
longer—up to 10 years in some cases—than they
were originally told.
He wants firefighters to forfeit huge chunks of
their pension—or be sacked—if they are unable to
maintain fitness standards.
Promises made to firefighters when they joined
the service have been broken with impunity.
These are the issues that lie at the heart of our
dispute and on which we have campaigned since
2011.
But the simple truth is that the government has
not shifted significantly on any of them. Not
because we’ve been too militant. But because
we’ve been too nice.
We should be under no illusions about the effort
involved in changing a government’s position
during an industrial dispute. Of course it will take a
serious fight. But London FBU members are up for
that fight. They realise that the alternative—to roll
over and give the government everything it
wants—is not an option.
It would seem that FBU members throughout the
rest of the country are up for the fight, too. That’s
why we won an overwhelming 78% ‘yes’ vote in
the strike ballot last August.
But since that result was announced, the strategy
of the union’s executive council (EC) has been
marked by excessive caution, by hesitancy and by
a lack of confidence in members.
Too often things have been allowed to drift. The
intervals between strike periods have been far too
long. Escalation should have happened much
earlier.
In the last 10 months, the EC has called less
than four days of strike action.
That is simply not good enough.
Momentum is a key factor in any industrial
dispute. Procrastination can undermine it. Inertia
causes confusion and frustration among members.
London members aren’t the only ones
demanding an escalation of strike action.
Members in the north-west region (covering
Merseyside, Greater Manchester, Lancashire,
Cumbria, Cheshire and Isle of Man) support an
escalation, too.
And Essex FBU members have voted in favour
of calling strikes for between eight and 16 days at
a time.
Brandon Lewis isn’t listening...
IT’S TIME TO
ESCALATE
Since 2011, while the FBU leadership has been
practising patience and reasonableness, Brandon
Lewis has been plundering our pensions.
While the EC was being patient and reasonable,
Lewis forced through a change in the normal
pension age to 60.
While the EC was being patient and reasonable,
Lewis hiked up our pension contributions on three
separate occasions.
While the EC was being patient and reasonable,
Lewis began the process of imposing the
contentious 2015 pension scheme.
While the EC was practising appeasement, the
government was waging war.
Over the last three years, members have seen a
stream of circulars from the national union telling
them that a serious fight is imminent.
They have heard, at meetings, senior union
officials—most notably general secretary Matt
Wrack, president Alan McLean and pensions officer
Sean Starbuck—tub-thump about how the gloves
will soon be coming off.
But every time the gloves come off, they are put
back on very quickly.
Such tactics run the danger of making the union
look weak and indecisive.
The recent decision to call a 24-hour strike was
welcome—but alone it isn’t nearly enough.
Of course strike tactics must be measured and
properly thought through. But everyone can see
that short, irregular strikes will not win this dispute.
Short strikes can work—but only if they are called
frequently. Otherwise, strikes must be longer.
Despite Brandon Lewis’s claims that it is
‘business as usual’ during strikes, contingency
plans have been totally exposed.
The scabs are failing. Lives have been lost, and
homes and workplaces have been destroyed.
No-one welcomes this, least of all proud and
compassionate firefighters, but it proves that the
government would be reckless to allow the dispute
to rumble on indefinitely.
There is more pressure on David Cameron and
Brandon Lewis than there is on FBU members.
Yesterday, in the House of Commons, Cameron
came under pressure to settle the dispute.
And speaking recently on national radio, Amanda
Platell, a former chief spin doctor for the Tories,
argued that the government should be looking to
cut a deal with firefighters before the general
election campaign begins.
CREDIT WHERE it is due, the EC has done
much right in this dispute. Our campaign
has been slick and professional; union
officials have spoken well in the media; and our
evidence-based arguments have trounced the
government’s case.
But powerful technical arguments and effective
presentation are not enough. They must be backed
up with a hard-hitting industrial campaign.
And that means more potent strikes.
Equally, the EC has made mistakes, and
members are entitled to debate those mistakes.
Alongside the excessive caution in setting strike
dates, there has been at least one other major
misjudgement.
That was the decision—which looks more illjudged
with each passing day—to allow the
Scottish region to cut free of taking strike action
following an improved (but still unsatisfactory) offer
from the Scottish government.
This was a serious tactical error and one that had
the potential to undermine our national campaign.
The EC must be bold enough to recognise their
mistake and show that they have learned the
lessons of it.
THE EXECUTIVE council meets again on 1
July. London’s EC member Ian Leahair will
be arguing strongly for an escalation of strike
action.
In the absence of an improved offer from Brandon
Lewis, it is surely inconceivable that the EC will not
agree.
No doubt Mr Lewis will offer to meet the FBU on
the condition that no strike action is called. But it
would be naïve in the extreme for the EC to fall for
this trick.
London FBU members will not be bought off with
promises of more meetings. We learned that lesson
in 2002-03 during the national pay strikes.
Only a significantly improved offer (by which we
do not mean the recent so-called ‘costed
proposals’) should be enough to persuade the EC
not to escalate our strikes.
Hundreds of thousands of local government
workers and teachers will be taking co-ordinated
strike action on 10 July. London FBU believes
firefighters should be on strike alongside them.
Some among the leadership of our union—
including the general secretary, assistant general
secretary, national officers and EC members—owe
their positions to the opposition they displayed to
the inadequate agreement that settled the 2002-03
pay dispute and the role they played in the
campaign for a more democratic and fighting union
that followed in its wake.
These officials must remember where they came
from and why they were elected.
London FBU members are furious at the attempts
by government to destroy their futures. They are
crying out for a fightback.
It’s time for the union’s leadership to start leading
that fight.
It’s time to escalate
http://www.london.fbu.org.uk/wp-content/...06/107.pdf
