MAJOR proposals to reinstate five firefighters on main fire engines at stations such as Worcester have been revealed.
Just a month after crew members were cut from five to four, fire chiefs at Hereford & Worcester Fire and Rescue Service (HWFRS) have now released new proposals to plug an £800,000 funding gap.
The move will ensure the first fire engine from each station will again be staffed by five crew members and see no redundancies made.
Fire chiefs insist the savings can be found by removing managerial posts to introduce 32 part time posts and taking away the inefficiencies of existing shift systems.
Under the proposals there will be an increase in the number of fire engines available during the day while the number available at night will remain the same.
Firefighters will see no changes to their shift length and start/finish times and will work no more shifts than they do now, just on a different pattern.
Savings of £300,000 can be delivered according to the plan which was revealed on Monday (March 27).
Area Commander Keith Chance, Head of Operations stated: “This set of proposals is a comprehensive plan that will bring significant benefit to the service, staff and public of Herefordshire and Worcestershire.
“It delivers a whole host of additional benefits such as increasing support to the 31 fire engines crewed by on-call firefighters, introducing more options for staff to work differently, flexible systems and removing the need for staff to work additional hours to cover crewing deficiencies.”
“HWFRS will soon be looking to recruit wholetime firefighters for the first time in a decade and we are keen to increase the number of applications from women and underrepresented groups.
“These proposals not only increase the number of firefighters, they do so by offering a variety of working patterns that are not currently available,” he added.
In response, Steve Gould from the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) said: “The FBU believe the service is making these massive changes merely because it can, as we have been informed during Watch visits that these changes are not finance driven.
“Whilst the FBU applaud five crew members on fire appliances we believe it is totally unacceptable to downgrade fire cover at both Malvern and Evesham.
“Currently both of these stations are Day Crewing which provide 24/7 365 days a year fire cover, the service proposals are guaranteed Wholetime cover 8.40am to 6pm, all other times including weekends will be retained/on call,” he added.
Consultation on the proposals began on Monday (March 27) and will include discussions with staff and trade unions such as FBU.
