25 June 2004
The Fire Brigades Union has given employers until the end of July to concede its members their disputed pay deal in full before it begins a ballot for industrial action.
At its recall conference last week, members voted for an emergency resolution to ballot for strikes. It warns that if employers attempt to impose an agreement, its executive will immediately ballot.
The move comes after months of negotiations between employers and the FBU. Employers have held back 3.5%
of a 7% deal, expected in November 2003, until agreement on national terms and conditions are finalised.
The two sides appeared to have reached a tentative agreement in late May. But the union's acceptance of 'new wording' on the issue of stand-down time, then its swift U-turn less than two weeks later, has fuelled speculation of internal strife.
Trade union insiders said FBU general secretary Andy Gilchrist has apparently lost control of his executive after promised staged pay deals failed to materialise. Its frustration over negotiations has boiled over into threats of industrial action, leaving Gilchrist increasingly isolated.
His position has come under further scrutiny after his absence from the recall conference last week, which also voted to disaffiliate from Labour.
A statement from the FBU said that Gilchrist had been advised to 'take a break from work and remain active'. A source said he was under extreme pressure and realised that he was unlikely to be re-elected as general secretary next year.
Employers reacted with amazement to the news of the ballot, claiming that they were close to signing an agreement.
'We were so close and firefighters must be questioning how we can move from near agreement to a ballot for industrial action,' said Christina Jebb, chair of the employers' negotiators.
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