THE FBU's executive council has recommended firefighters accept a 3.2 per cent basic rates pay rise.

Fire Brigades Union general secretary Steve Wright said the offer will insulate firefighters and fire control staff from inflation for a year and open up the possibility of restructuring fire service pay to recognise additional skills and duties.

“But we need to be clear that inflation-level pay rises will not be enough in the long run,” he added. “Since 2010, firefighters have lost around 12 per cent of the value of their pay. Workers rightly expect Labour to repair the damage of austerity.”

If accepted, the offer would come into effect from July 1. It would also mean continual professional development, scrapping the trainee rate of pay — meaning that all new recruits start on the higher “development” rate — and immediate negotiations on pay progression and pay for extra duties and skills.