Laois pictures confirm escalation of firefighter's strike which management say is 'disproportionate'

'Fire Station Closed' signs replaced picketing firefighters outside the main fire station in Laois as the strike for better pay and conditions escalated on Saturday, August 12.

The closure of Portlaoise Fire Station is the result of the SIPTU National Retained Fire Fighter Committee to escalate their strike action due to what it says is the failure of Government to respond to what they say are their legitimate concerns.

The decision meant that from 8am today Laois County Fire and Rescue Service stations in Rathdowney, Portarlington, Portlaoise and Abbeyleix were shut. On Sunday Stradbally, Mountmellick, Durrow and Mountrath would be closed. 

Further stations will go dark on a rolling basis through the rest of the week and more escalation is threatened.

Laois Firefighters instructed to escalate action this weekend

SIPTU Public Administration and Community Division Organiser, Karan O Loughlin said: “It has been nine weeks since this industrial action commenced and the silence from the Government has been astonishing. It has abandoned the retained fire service, leaving firefighters at the side of the road in an effort to break their dispute. 

“This strategy will not work. The men and women of the retained service are steadfast in their belief that the service will collapse if adequate measures are not taken to address the current recruitment and retention crisis and this dispute will continue until this happens. 

“If this does not encourage management back to the table then on Saturday, 19th August, an additional one station will close each week in each county. Stations around the country are already closed fifty per cent of the time because of the refusal by management to agree on adequate cover arrangements with firefighters, and because many of them don’t have enough staff to respond to calls. This situation will now escalate.”

Local authority management said they are extremely concerned by the escalation which they claim is an "unprecedented action" that  "represents a significant increase in risk to the safety of the public and to the safety of firefighters and is totally disproportionate". More below picture.

While there are acknowledged challenges in relation to retained firefighter recruitment and retention, and the sustainability of service, a statement on behalf of Laois and other Councils says a "clear pathway and plan" have been developed to address these issues. 

In addition, the councils say a recent Labour Court recommendation provides for a significant increase in earnings and improvements to conditions for retained firefighters. They say further negotiation on pay is possible through the national pay talks, due to start in a matter of weeks.

The local authorities argue that the retained firefighter role is a part-time role. Currently, they say retained firefighters earn on average €25,000 per year. This ranges from €20,000 in stations with the lowest activity to in excess of €55,000 in stations of high activity. The majority of retained firefighters have other employment or alternative sources of income. 

They say the recent Labour Court recommendation would have provided a significant increase to firefighter earnings of €5,523 - €6,941 per annum. Councils claim the increase would be achieved through a significant increase in the retainer, an increase of €1,200 to premium payments and a fire-prevention programme that would see a further €1,872 increase in earnings.

This was rejected by SIPTU members. 

Management insist that they have addressed structured time off for retained firefighters by reducing the obligation for response to alerts (from 75% to 45%) with no reduction in retainer, despite the reduction in availability. The councils add that this will require the recruitment of 400 more firefighters, which they say management has committed to. 

A statement added that further negotiation on pay is possible through the national pay talks, due to start in a matter of weeks. They said Minister Darragh O’Brien has stated his commitment to advocating on behalf of retained firefighters during the talks. 

"It is simply not within the power of local authorities to provide any pay increase outside of the national pay agreement and we are calling on SIPTU to recognise this and call off unconstructive and unnecessary industrial action, which has a significant impact on public safety. More below picture.

"Management believe that a resolution is possible through acceptance of the current Labour Court offer and engagement with the forthcoming national pay talks," they said. 

They said the public should continue to call 999/112 in the event of an emergency.