NEWS RELEASE
For Immediate Release Wednesday 4 December 2002
Strong support in Scotland for fire service march on Saturday
This Saturday (7 December) Scotland's trade unionists will join the FBU `Fair pay for the fire service' march and rally in central London.
The FBU suspended the strike action, due to begin this week, to explore a settlement with the employer in talks at ACAS, the conciliation service. The march and rally will go ahead this Saturday, backed by the STUC, giving thousands of people from across Scotland an opportunity to show their continuing support for a fair pay settlement for the fire service.
The STUC and local unions have co-ordinated travel arrangements already, including through a website launched to support the rally. Visitors to the `fair pay for fire service' site www.fp4f.com can get up to the minute information on the event.
STUC General Secretary, Bill Speirs, said:
"The support for the fire service in Scotland has been phenomenal from the beginning. But now even people who were initially ambivalent are swinging behind our firefighters, as they realise that "modernisation" is being used as a cover for "sacking 10,000 firefighters and closing our local fire station"
For further comment, contact:
Bill Speirs