Dublin Fire Brigade members vote for strike action in ambulance dispute

DUBLIN Fire Brigade members have voted overwhelmingly in favour of taking industrial and strike action following a dispute with Dublin City Council management.

This afternoon it emerged that SIPTU firefighters voted 93 per cent in favour of strike action and 97 per in favour of industrial action, in a ballot counted this morning, February 17, in Liberty Hall.

The issue resolves around “attempts” by Dublin City Council management to “break-up the Emergency Medical Service”.

Speaking this afternoon SIPTU Sector Organiser, Brendan O’Brien said: “Our members have given an emphatic mandate to the SIPTU DFB (Dublin Fire Brigade) Strike Committee to take whatever industrial measures are required to resist the attempts to break-up the Emergency Medical Service.”

SIPTU Public Administration and Community Organiser Division, John King said that in the coming days, the SIPTU DFB Strike Committee will consider options available.

Mr King said: “What the senior management of Dublin City Council is attempting by seeking to outsource the ambulance call and dispatch function of the DFB Emergency Medical Service would compromise the safety of our members, who deliver this critical lifesaving service, as well as expose the public to increased risk.

 “In the coming days, the SIPTU DFB Strike Committee will consider the options available to it and decide upon the next steps in our campaign to retain the DFB Emergency Medical Service as a fully functioning operation capable of delivering the best service possible to the residents of Dublin.

“SIPTU representatives remain available for meaningful engagement with the senior management of Dublin City Council if it is genuinely interested in finding an acceptable resolution to this long running dispute.” 

A comment from Dublin City Council was not available when contacted by The Echo.