Matt Wrack

Fire and rescue service employers have unilaterally scrapped a ground-breaking agreement with the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) which had enabled firefighters to assist the NHS and care sector response to COVID-19. Negotiations over health and safety measures for firefighters delivering high-risk COVID-19 duties were ongoing when the National Employers issued a communication ending the agreement on the evening of Wednesday 13 January. The decision appears to be supported by the National Fire Chiefs Council. This was done without any prior notice to firefighters or the FBU. The FBU says the termination is driven by the employers’ desire to alter previously agreed safety arrangements which protected firefighters undertaking additional work. alternative safety measures Under the agreement, firefighters were required to submit a negative COVID-19 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test before returning to their fire station on normal duties, protecting the service from mass outbreaks by removing the risk of cross contamination. However, in talks the National Employers attempted to remove this protection at a national level. The union had offered a range of alternative safety measures to enable the activities to proceed safely Working over the Christmas and New Year period, the union had offered a range of alternative safety measures to enable the activities to proceed safely, but these were rejected by employers. The employers then unilaterally withdrew from the agreement. As a result, there are now no national protections for firefighters delivering COVID-19 duties. fire and rescue service The FBU called this an “abdication of responsibility” by employers regarding the safety of firefighters and says the uneven health and safety practices across other sectors should not be repeated in the fire and rescue service. Firefighters, overwhelmingly represented by the Fire Brigades Union (FBU), have taken on numerous additional COVID-related activities during the course of the pandemic in 2020 and 2021 in order to assist in keeping communities safe. This agreement was originally established through a tripartite mechanism involving the FBU, the fire service National Employers and the National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC). More recently it was renewed via the National Joint Council for Local Authority Fire & Rescue Services (NJC). The FBU is urging fire and rescue service National Employers to get back around the table so that the national agreement can be reintroduced in full. The union will be speaking with its members before issuing further guidance. national safety standards Matt Wrack, FBU general secretary, said: “This irresponsible move from fire and rescue service employers threatens to endanger the lives of firefighters, their families, and the public. The FBU has consistently worked with employers and fire chiefs in good faith to enable firefighters to safely take on new work to help their communities through this pandemic. But employers have decided to begin a race to the bottom on safety, abdicating their responsibility to keep their staff safe, and services protected from mass outbreaks.” Firefighters carrying out COVID-19 duties have saved lives and we are proud to have helped them do it safely" “Rather than support firefighters’ life-saving work, employers have walked away from the very agreement which enabled it. By removing national safety standards, they are exposing staff and services to a deadly disease - all apparently to make a political attack on a trade union simply because we are trying to ensure work is safe. Firefighters carrying out COVID-19 duties have undoubtedly saved lives and we are proud to have helped them do it safely." national safety agreement "We deeply regret that employers have scrapped this crucial agreement and urge them to reintroduce vital national safety protections and resume talks. They should stop playing politics and get round the table to resolve this. Frances O’Grady, TUC General Secretary, said: “Firefighters are making a huge contribution to fighting the pandemic - helping the vulnerable, driving ambulances and supporting NHS and care services. But safety comes first. The consequences of COVID-19 running rampant through a local fire station and communities are too grim to contemplate. None of us know when we might need to make a 999 call. By turning their back on the national safety agreement, employers and fire chiefs are turning their back on us all. They must get back to the negotiating table.”

Firefighters are ready to assist the UK’s rollout of COVID-19 vaccines after an agreement was reached between the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) and the fire and rescue service National Employers. The agreement allows firefighters to assist other public sector organizations with the track, trace, and isolate measures, and to check that potential higher risk premises are COVID-secure. Firefighters will inspect workplaces where relevant authorities have raised concerns about COVID-security, notably identified in Leicester garment factories. The FBU is encouraging anyone concerned about workplace COVID-security to raise it with their local council in the first instance. Negative COVID-19 Test The FBU and National Employers said fire and rescue services are open to assisting with the vaccine rollout if requested by Local Resilience Forums. Firefighters will have to wait three days and receive a negative COVID-19 test before returning to fire and rescue service premises when returning from pandemic duties. Tripartite Agreement Firefighters’ work responding to the pandemic was previously permitted under a tripartite agreement involving the National Fire Chiefs Council, but the FBU and National Employers said in a joint circular the temporary agreement had become much longer-term than originally envisaged. The work will now come under the jurisdiction of the National Joint Council, where the FBU and National Employers negotiate pay and conditions, the normal body for national industrial agreements in the fire and rescue service. All 14 previously agreed activities are covered in the new agreement. Firefighter Volunteers Delivering essential items, PPE, driving ambulances at incidents, assisted with COVID-19 tests From March to October, firefighter volunteers helped the pandemic response delivering more than 111,000 essential items to vulnerable people, assisting paramedics, and driving ambulances at more than 87,000 incidents, and delivering 25,000 units of PPE. 68,000 single-use face masks have been assembled and 32,000 food parcels packaged. Firefighters have also assisted with 1,500 COVID-19 tests, delivered more than 1,000 infections, prevention, and control training sessions, and moved more than 2,000 bodies of the deceased. Safety Measures The latest agreement is initially in place until January, to ensure that brigades comply with all safety measures with a view to an extension beyond that. Firefighters Stepping-Up Matt Wrack, FBU General Secretary, said, “This year has been an extraordinary one for the fire and rescue service, with firefighters stepping up and doing more to tackle the pandemic than could previously have been imagined.” “We finally have a COVID-19 vaccine and, having already helped so many in their communities through this pandemic, firefighters will want to do their bit to help roll out mass vaccination.” Second Wave Of Pandemic Matt Wrack continued “We are still in the midst of the second wave of this pandemic and cannot be complacent about the serious risks posed by a coronavirus.” “That’s why we are expanding this crucial work, offering to assist with track and trace and to check that higher-risk premises are COVID-secure.” “It remains as crucial as ever to prevent COVID-19 outbreaks in fire and rescue services– and that means taking proper precautionary measures, including testing and isolation, to make sure firefighters don’t get sick when protecting the public.”

Firefighters, climate campaigners and scientists have urged Chancellor Rishi Sunak to invest in the fire and rescue service to protect the public and vital infrastructure from the devastating effects of climate change – or risk ruining the chance of a green recovery. In a letter to the Chancellor ahead of the Spending Review on 25 November, the Fire Brigades Union and climate groups including Green New Deal UK, Greenpeace UK, Friends of the Earth, and the Campaign Against Climate Change (CACC), call for the recruitment of ‘at least an additional 5,000 frontline firefighters in the next year’ to deal with severe weather events such as mass flooding and wildfires that are ‘increasing in occurrence and intensity.’ Non-Fire incidents Signatories to the letter, which also include Robin Hood Tax UK, We Own It, Tax Justice UK, and Economist Ann Pettifor, say that “Climate change is posing a serious and growing threat to the United Kingdom” and that as the risk from climate change has grown “The fire and rescue service has not seen its funding increase to match the threat.” In England over the last decade, non-fire incidents attended by the fire and rescue services have soared by 12%. In the last year alone, there was a 16% increase in the number of flooding events requiring a fire and rescue service response. However, across the UK there are 11,200 fewer firefighters than a decade ago, with central funding cut by 30% since 2013-14. Extreme weather events Fire and Rescue Service in the UK is the major responder to severe weather related events The letter points to storms Ciara, Jorge, Dennis and the record number of wildfires that hit regions all over the UK in 2019 and 2020 as evidence of a climate in breakdown. The UK government’s own National Risk Register categorizes extreme weather events including flooding as ‘high consequence risks’. Fire and Rescue Service in the UK is the major responder to severe weather related events rescuing people and animals as well as protecting property and infrastructure.  In the letter, firefighters, climate campaigners, scientists and economists say that investing in the ‘key frontline defense against climate change’ will ‘protect the infrastructure that is vital to delivering a green recovery.’ The demands are made as part of the FBU’s #FundTheFrontline campaign which has been lobbying the Chancellor for investment in the fire and rescue service in the upcoming Spending Review.  Adequate frontline defenses Matt Wrack, FBU general secretary, said: “Climate change is one of the biggest threats facing the UK, and it is firefighters that are on the frontline protecting people, property, businesses and infrastructure from some of its worst effects including mass flooding and wildfires.” “But whilst the climate crisis has worsened the fire and rescue service has faced devastating cuts leaving it with 11,200 fewer firefighters than a decade ago. Already crews on the ground are stretched thin but as severe weather events become more frequent, it’s clear we will need more frontline firefighters. The science is clear – we're only going to see more extreme weather events as this crisis unfolds. If the fire and rescue service continues to creep into decay as it has under austerity, we’ll be left without adequate frontline defenses against this existential threat.” Delivering green recovery Austerity has created a situation where fire and rescue services are having to do more with less" Hannah Martin, co-director of Green New Deal UK, said: “Frontline workers have been at the heart of the UK’s response to COVID-19 and the fight against climate breakdown will be no different. With the increasing intensity and frequency of climate impacts, we need to ensure that those on the frontline are as well-equipped as possible to deal with the many challenges that the climate crisis will throw up.” “Austerity has created a situation where fire and rescue services are having to do more with less - and this cannot be allowed to continue. To keep us safe now, and in the future, and to deliver a green recovery, we need this government to invest in the people working tirelessly on the frontline.” Carbon-Neutral future Jamie Peters, Interim Director of Campaigns, Friends of the Earth England, Wales and Northern Ireland, said: “The climate crisis and the response to COVID are the defining problems of our time. The pandemic is disproportionately hitting those most vulnerable, the parallel is that extreme weather does the same, but the recovery from both share a lot in common.” “As we look to bounce back we have a unique opportunity to rebuild our economy to get us to a carbon-neutral future. That requires the right levels of funding of course, but what government wouldn’t think this was a sensible and obviously needed investment?”  Signatories to the letter to Chancellor Rishi Sunak: Jamie Peters, Interim Director of Campaigns, Friends of the Earth England, Wales and Northern Ireland Rebecca Newsom, Head of Politics, Greenpeace UK Suzanne Jeffery, Chair Campaign against Climate Change (CACC) Harry Holmes, Campaigner, UK Youth Climate Coalition Ruth London, Fuel Poverty Action Fran Boait, Executive Director, Positive Money Kate Metcalf, Co-Director, Wen (Women’s Environmental Network) Suzanne Jeffery, Chair Campaign against Climate Change (CACC) Ann Pettifor, Director, Policy Research in Macroeconomics (PRIME) Sara Stillwell, Climate and Communications Lead, Robin Hood Tax Campaign UK Robert Palmer, Executive Director, Tax Justice UK Mary Church, Head of Campaigns, Friends of the Earth Scotland Lord John Bird, Founder, The Big Issue Andrew Simms, Co-director, New Weather Institute, co-ordinator, Rapid Transition Alliance Tim Padmore and Iain Solanki-Willats, Campaigners, Climate SOS: Shift Our Subsidies Robin McAlpine, Director, Common Weal Cat Hobbs, Director, We Own It Dr Stuart Parkinson, Executive Director, Scientists for Global Responsibility Dr Sally Zlotowitz, Psychologists for Social Change Matt Williams, Founder and Co-Director, UK Youth for Nature Suzie Marshall, Campaigner, UK Youth for Nature Harry Holmes, Campaigner, UK Youth Climate Coalition Belmiro Matos da Costa, Organizer, 2 What Degree? Deborah Burton Co-Founder Tipping Point North South, Transform Defense Project

Ground-breaking research has revealed the serious health risks to UK firefighters following exposure to toxic fire effluents, the chemicals emitted during a fire, in an independent University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) report commissioned by the Fire Brigades Union (FBU). The work is the UK's first and the latest in a growing body of international evidence suggesting an increased risk of firefighters developing cancer and other diseases. Fires produce a cocktail of toxic, irritant, and carcinogenic chemicals in the form of aerosols, dust, fibers, smoke, and fumes or gases and vapors. The report includes a summary of UCLan’s testing on-site at 18 fire stations as well as over 10,000 responses to a national firefighter survey run jointly between the FBU and UCLan. Cancer-Causing Chemicals Indoor air testing at a number of fire stations and training centers highlighted that UK firefighters are still being exposed to the high levels of toxic contaminants during and after a fire, as cancer-causing chemicals remain on PPE clothing, equipment, and elsewhere at the fire ground. Test samples revealed carcinogens inside firefighters’ helmets, on PPE, and even on breathing apparatus mask filters. Surveying Current Firefighters More than 10,000 currently-serving firefighters were surveyed in order to better understand UK decontamination practices and the prevalence of illness, revealing: 1% of survey respondents had already been diagnosed with cancer, compared with less than 1% of the general population. Three quarters have served for at least 10 years before receiving their diagnosis. More than half were under the age of 50 and a fifth were under 40. Of those diagnosed, 26% have skin cancer, the most common, followed by testicular cancer (10%), head and neck cancer (4%), and Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (3%). Half of the survey respondents don’t think their fire service takes decontamination practices, including cleaning PPE and equipment, seriously. 1 in 5 of the survey respondents store their fire gloves in their boots, 1 in 5 stores in their pockets, and 1 in 10 stores in their helmet, risking the transfer of toxic contaminants directly to the skin. Nearly half of the survey respondents felt there was a badge of honor attitude in the service, particularly when emerging from fires with contaminants on their PPE or face as a sign of hard work. Practice Guide Scientists have created a best practice guide for fire and rescue services, putting forward a number of urgent recommendations to minimize firefighters’ exposure to toxic fire effluents. This includes: Every fire and rescue service must implement fully risk-assessed decontamination procedures en-route to, during, and after fire incidents, and ensure all relevant staff is trained in implementing these procedures. Fire and rescue personnel should receive regular and up-to-date training on the harmful health effects of exposure to toxic fire effluents, and how these exposures can be reduced, minimized, or eliminated. Firefighters should wear respiratory protective equipment at all times while firefighting, including after a fire has been extinguished, but is still ‘gassing off’. PPE should be clean and should be thoroughly decontaminated after every incident to avoid a build-up of toxic contaminants. Firefighters should shower within an hour of returning from incidents. Regular health screening and recording attendance at fire incidents over the course of a firefighter’s career is strongly advised and will be key to the longer-term monitoring and management of their health. Presumptive Legislation If a firefighter believes their illness is work-related, they are required to prove it In most states in Canada and the United States, presumptive legislation recognizes certain cancers as occupational diseases amongst firefighters. In the UK, it has so far been concluded that there is not considered to be enough evidence to link occupational exposure to carcinogenic fire effluents and the higher risk of cancers. This means that, if a firefighter believes their illness is work-related, they are required to prove it – an almost impossible retroactive task. Environmental Audit Committee Ahead of the report’s publication, the Environmental Audit Committee recommended that the Health and Safety Executive implement its report’s recommendations on improving firefighters’ work environments. In response, the government confirmed that it would instruct HSE to monitor the research and to ensure fire and rescue services identify risks to firefighters. Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) UK law requires firefighters’ Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to meet heat-resistance, heat transfer, and water resistance requirements, but it is not required to protect wearers from toxic gases and particulates. This best-practice report is the first stage of ongoing research examining the link between firefighters’ exposure to toxic fire effluents and the risk of cancer and other diseases. Reduce The Risk Matt Wrack, FBU general secretary, said, “Firefighters risk their lives every day to keep their communities safe. But it’s clear that the risk to their health doesn’t stop when the fire has been extinguished.” “Sadly, we often see serving and former firefighters suffer from cancer and other illnesses. Every firefighter knows the fear that, someday, they and their family could receive the devastating news – but we’re determined to do all we can to reduce the risk of firefighters developing these terrible diseases as a result of their job.” Fire And Rescue Services Matt Wrack added, “There are some hard truths for fire and rescue services in this report – and far more needs to be done to protect firefighters from cancer and other illnesses. And among firefighters, there are still some myths to dispel, which is why regular and up to date training on the risk to their health is so essential.” “This research is a crucial first step to definitively proving the link between firefighting, toxic contaminants, and cancer in the UK. The Health and Safety Executive must urgently implement the recommendations to bring life-saving measures into place as soon as possible.” Implementing Recommendations Report highlights some of the risks and sources of contamination that firefighters are exposed to regularly Anna Stec, a professor in fire chemistry and toxicity at the University of Central Lancashire (UCLan), said, “These recommendations are vital if we are to improve firefighters’ health and well-being, keep them safe and prevent exposure to toxic chemicals, which can lead to life-changing problems or premature death. They must be implemented swiftly to reduce the health risks firefighters face.” “This report highlights some of the risks and sources of contamination that firefighters are exposed to on a regular basis, and how these can be controlled. We hope that this guide will be adopted and used by the fire sector across the UK and beyond so the overall exposure of firefighters and their families is reduced.” Case Study – Sid McNally, Essex firefighter                       Sid McNally joined Essex County Fire and Rescue Service in January 1995. In 2012, when he was 48, his wife noticed a lump on his neck and insisted he go to his GP, who referred him to the hospital. They took a biopsy of his neck and decided to remove the lump. After surgery, he was diagnosed with cancer of the base of the tongue. The consultant asked how many cigarettes he smoked per day, but he had never smoked. The consultant had already diagnosed one of Sid’s colleagues, Steve, with the same head and neck cancer. Tragically Steve, also a non-smoker, died several years later. Contaminant Sid McNally said, “I feel I was lucky as my cancer was identified at an early stage. With chemo and radiotherapy treatment, I managed to return to work in just over six months. Sadly, my mate Steve, who I’d served with on the same watch for three years, did not survive.” “Contaminants were not understood for much of my time in the service and therefore weren’t taken seriously. When I joined, we wouldn’t even wear breathing apparatus when attending fires in the open, including care fires. Nowadays there are a lot more precautions and my station definitely overcame that badge of honor culture where we were proud of our dirty kit.” “I believe if the current recommendations had been in place when I first joined the service, I am in no doubt that they would have made a difference to me and my colleagues. If we’d known and we’d had these measures, we’d have used them and fewer of us would have got sick.”

Responding to a terrible student accommodation fire in Bolton, the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) has called for a complete overhaul of UK fire safety and condemned cuts to fire and rescue services. Matt Wrack, FBU general secretary, said: "My congratulations go to the crews on the ground who did amazing work in incredibly difficult circumstances. This terrible fire highlights the complete failure of the UK’s fire safety system. It’s deeply troubling to see fire spread rapidly up a building’s exterior again - a shocking indictment of the government’s shameful inaction after Grenfell. This is not how any building should react to a fire in the 21st century, let alone a building in which people live. We need to end the deregulation agenda and the disastrous cuts to our fire and rescue service. It's time for a complete overhaul of UK fire safety before it’s too late.” fire and rescue service Les Skarratts, FBU North West executive council member, said: "Firefighters on the ground have worked tirelessly to contain the fire and rescue residents. There will clearly be some hard lessons to learn as the circumstances become clearer in the coming days. Greater Manchester has lost more than 600 firefighters since 2010 alone and, alarmingly, Andy Burnham is trying to cut another six fire engines, including one in Bolton. We need to stop the senseless cuts to our fire and rescue service before we see another awful incident like this.”