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July 27, 2005
You could not invent this stuff as fiction ....
Just got this off the FBU news site; note the thinly veiled threat by the officer - one which, 20 years ago would have landed the same officer on a charge for "abuse of authority" under the old rules which Mr Blair and his shower of cretins thought too draconian!
The stage is set for row over fire play
'Lives were put at risk'FIREFIGHTERS in Cambridge were taken out of action Friday, 22 July, to watch a play about modernisation.
And crews at the city's Parkside fire station have hit out at bosses who, they say, put the lives of residents in rural Cambridgeshire at risk by forcing crews from village fire stations to cover for the city teams.
But fire service managers accused a few dissident firefighters of resisting vital changes to the service and rejecting out of hand positive ways of discussing controversial issues.
The play is part of an effort by fire bosses to engage their staff in a discussion on how the 'modernisation of the fire service' is proceeding. Every member of staff in Cambridgeshire will see it with showings at Cambridge Fire Station yesterday (Friday, 22 July) and on Monday.
A source at Parkside said: "We're up in arms about this - we offered to come in on our days off to receive the training, if that's what this is, but we were told we will be disciplined if we didn't go along with it. The result was that villages will be without any cover at all as both our pumping engines will be out of action, and village crews will have to come to Cambridge to cover for us."
The News attended the first showing of the play, by professional drama group Dramanon, Friday, 22 July.
It features a modern and an oldfashioned firefighter discussing the merits of modernisation.
A number watched the play Friday, 22 July, but remained quiet throughout a workshop afterwards aimed at discussing the nature of the changes they are facing.
The latest row follows revelations in the News acute staffing problems were pushing depleted resources in the service to the limit
* often forcing fire engines and rescue vehicles out of action.Dave Warren, Cambridge district manager, said: "We have a duty to provide fire cover, and we will. We also have a duty to train our people, and we will.
"We have a responsibility to train our employees, and we expect them to attend. No workplace would allow staff to pick and choose training about new legislation which affected their roles.
"People may decide they will not participate in the discussions - that is up to them - but it is a missed opportunity to have a meaningful discussion about the modernisation of the service.
"However, if there is a situation where people feel that they can't contribute because they feel intimidated by the attitudes of a dominant few, then we are dealing with a totally different situation, which is not consistent with equality and fairness in the workplace."
He said workshops were set up "to enable a full discussion" about changes within the fire service.
23 July 2005
All I can say is that 'damagement' have some very strange ideas about how to win hearts and minds in this debate - and worse, what constitutes a "full discussion". Frankly this really betrays the fact that the management of this Brigade know they have no valid argument to support what they are doing and know they cannot win any rational debate - so out come the threats, the blackmail and the browbeating tactics. Anyone who disagrees with us is attacked as "obstructionist, racist or any other convenient -ist", they can't present a rationale for what they are doing, so they attack the person who points out the flaws. The FBU are most definitely not my favourite organisation, in fact I would generally class them as one of the real enemies of the service I have been part of and loved for more than thirty years now, but they are pussycats compared to the idiots now "damaging" the service itself!
Welcome to the modern management technique as practiced by incompetent managers everywhere.
Posted by The Gray Monk at July 27, 2005 10:42 AM
Comments
It's interesting to see how this shower of cretins are behaving. Of course, the real damage has been done to the Fire Service, and charades like this are just rubbing salt into the wound. Is it any wonder that firefighters are not 'getting involved in meaningful discussion about the modernisation of the fire service' when the politicians, civil servants and sycophantic fire chiefs have not been willing to listen? Please - will someone tell them that the Emperor really doesn't have any clothes on? You're right - you couldn't make this up!
Posted by: Slim Jim at July 28, 2005 10:13 AM