1,000 signatures reached
To: Derbyshire Fire & Rescue Authority
Oppose Dangerous Fire Staffing in Derbyshire
We, the undersigned call on Derbyshire Fire Authority to stop the introduction of crewing On-Call/Retained Duty System appliances with only three firefighters.
Why is this important?
This practice endangers the safety of firefighters and the public of Derbyshire alike. It puts an immense amount of moral pressure on firefighters and junior officers to act in an unsafe manner using unsafe practices that will put our members and the public at risk. We have had decades of experience and training for riding with at least four crew members and it is incomprehensible to believe that these methods that have been instilled for years can just be switched off overnight. Firefighters will act, and forcing our members to take these risks is unacceptable.
The actual effect is minimal. There has only been approx. 60 calls per year that this could impact. That is barely 2 per RDS unit a year! It will not improve the retention or recruitment of on call firefighters due to the fundamental issues still going unchanged. Those being the low remuneration, migration opportunities and the failure to recruit in sufficient numbers with effective means. The project was supposed to improve reward, retention and motivation for on call firefighters, it will none of these.
The Fire Brigades Union has consistently made its case throughout the project meetings to managers, but to date without any realisation. This project is led by a simple notion that because other services do it, we should. This is a weak planning method and does not put Derbyshire at the forefront of firefighter safety. Like the introduction of small appliances, Derbyshire made bold and solid decisions to remove them and The Fire Brigades Union applauds our service for this. In a different set of circumstances, there could have been a firefighter fatality, or serious injury. The introduction of riding with three crew members is no different!
The actual effect is minimal. There has only been approx. 60 calls per year that this could impact. That is barely 2 per RDS unit a year! It will not improve the retention or recruitment of on call firefighters due to the fundamental issues still going unchanged. Those being the low remuneration, migration opportunities and the failure to recruit in sufficient numbers with effective means. The project was supposed to improve reward, retention and motivation for on call firefighters, it will none of these.
The Fire Brigades Union has consistently made its case throughout the project meetings to managers, but to date without any realisation. This project is led by a simple notion that because other services do it, we should. This is a weak planning method and does not put Derbyshire at the forefront of firefighter safety. Like the introduction of small appliances, Derbyshire made bold and solid decisions to remove them and The Fire Brigades Union applauds our service for this. In a different set of circumstances, there could have been a firefighter fatality, or serious injury. The introduction of riding with three crew members is no different!
