The Labour Court has released 10 recommendations over the dispute between Retained Firefighters and the Local Government Management Agency, following a range of discussions over the last month.
According to retained members, a recruitment and retention crisis in the service means that many firefighters are unable to take their leave entitlements due to staff shortages.
Members of the retained service are part-time firefighters who are paid an annual retainer to be available for callouts.
The Local Government Management Agency and SIPTU were invited by the Labour Court to enter discussions, days before industrial action would have seen a full withdrawal of services by retained firefighters.
The Labour Court Recommendation, which has been seen by the Shannonside FM Newsroom, calls for staff at retained stations to be increased to 12, thereby allowing a crew of six to be rostered on, while an alternate crew is off.
The plans would see an increase of approximately 400 staff and thereby reduce the liability of each firefighter to respond to alerts from 75% to 45% of alerts.
The Court also called for a very urgent effort to be made to fill all current vacancies in the service including vacancies arising from the implementation of the staffing recommendation.
The issue of retainers and payments has also been a pressure point for both sides, with firefighters arguing that the rates have not keep pace with the increasing demands of the job and the growing cost of living.
Following discussions and analysis, the Labour court has called for an increase across the scale of between 24.1% to 32.7%
Other recommendations included in the report are that policies should be developed and standardised in relation to sick leave and all forms of statutory leave, that arrangements be put in place to implement community-based fire prevention programmes involving Retained Firefighters and that each Retained Firefighter be issued with a Number 1 Dress Uniform.
The document now been sent to both parties for examination.
Other recommendations included in the report are as follows:
- That the current arrangement whereby premium payments which apply (a) throughout weekends and (b) at night from 10.00pm to 7.00am should be amended such that, at night, the premium is applicable from 8.00pm to 8.00am. It is the Court’s understanding that, having regard to the liability on Firefighters to attend drills which commonly occur from 7.00pm to 9.00pm, this change will bring a benefit in premium payments of €1,200 approx. p.a. and, depending on levels of attendance and activity in the station a potential overall increase, inclusive of payment for attendance at drills, of between €1,500 approx. and €2,972 approx. p.a.
- That arrangements be put in place to implement community-based fire prevention programmes involving Retained Firefighters. This initiative to provide an option for each Retained Firefighter to undertake up to 80 hours of this planed activity per annum which would provide an additional income of €1,872 per annum.
- That the engagement in the joint process to include constructive engagement to explore the potential to introduce an annual ‘floor value’ to earnings accruing from callouts. That engagement to take account of all relevant practical considerations in the context of the diversity of activity levels among stations nationwide including the need to protect the effectiveness of service delivery to the public and the need to avoid negative impact on callout responses for example
