LONDON (Reuters) -A trade union representing British firefighters recommended an improved pay offer from fire service employers on Saturday after it postponed planned strike action for members to vote on the offer.
The Fire Brigades Union (FBU) said the pay offer of a 7% rise backdated to last July and for another 5% increase from July 1 this year was below inflation in the first year, but still represented a “significant shift” from a previous offer of just 2%.
FBU General Secretary Matt Wrack said while would not “sugar coat” the pay offer, the union leadership had made its recommendation after weighing up the “positives and negatives.”
A resolution of the dispute, if union members accept the pay offer during a ballot to be held from Feb. 20 to March 6, could offer some relief to the British government after a wave of disruptive strikes across sectors such as education, railways and healthcare.
(Reporting by Sachin Ravikumar; Editing by Mark Potter and Mike Harrison)
