A fire union chief for south Essex today claimed national strike action was "inevitable" if firefighters' pay demands were not met.
The claim comes after hundreds of firefighters from across the UK took part in a protest march in Belfast in support of a national pay claim.
The Fire Brigades Union (FBU) is prepared to hold the first national strike in 25 years if it does not win its demand for a new pay formula.
Dick Duane, the FBU representative for Basildon, Castle Point and Thurrock, said: "We have firefighters who are on family tax credit because they just don't earn enough money."
Published Monday August 26, 2002
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